See a play where American summer stock began
Films first shown in the West, 1896
The Historic Elitch Theatre opened in 1890 on the original Elitch Gardens grounds in northwest Denver. The amusement park moved downtown in 1995; the theatre and its carousel pavilion stayed where they were built.
Why it's unique
It was Denver's first professional theatre, and from 1893 it housed America's first and oldest summer-stock theatre company, a run that lasted into the 1960s. Summer stock as an American institution starts in this building.
It also holds a separate first: the earliest films screened anywhere in the western United States were shown here in 1896. The list of people who worked the stage runs through Grace Kelly, Douglas Fairbanks, Vincent Price, Edward G. Robinson and Cecil B. DeMille. The theatre went dark in 1991 and a foundation formed in 2002 has been restoring it since.
Before you go
This is a restoration in progress rather than a polished venue, and that is much of the appeal. Check what is actually programmed before travelling, because the schedule is irregular and the building is not open daily.
Do not confuse it with Elitch Gardens, the amusement park, which relocated downtown in 1995 and shares only the name. The carousel pavilion beside the theatre is part of the same site and worth walking round.