Historic site · Ludington & Manistee

Ramsdell Theatre

Manistee's 1903 opera house, on the National Register of Historic Places, restored and still staging plays, concerts and live broadcasts.

Photo: Cbl62, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

The Ramsdell Theatre is the reason to plan an evening in Manistee: a restored 1903 opera house that still puts on shows, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Local lawyer Thomas Jefferson Ramsdell built it, with Chicago architect Solon Spencer Beman, and the painted details are worth arriving early for: Walter Wilcox Burridge’s front drop curtain, and lobby lunettes and a house dome painted by Ramsdell’s son, Frederic. James Earl Jones began his career on this stage.

A community restoration that began in the 1990s raised close to $4 million and added an elevator. Today the Ramsdell Regional Center for the Arts runs the theatre under a lease from the city, with plays (the Manistee Civic Players perform here), concerts, art exhibitions and live broadcasts such as the Met Opera.

Check the calendar before your trip and book for anything you do not want to miss, through the theatre’s own site rather than a resale site. The theatre is at 101 Maple Street; do not park on Maple, since free parking is listed on First Street, River Street and nearby lots. Accessible doors are under the marquee, and an elevator reaches the balcony.

Practical information

Managed by: Ramsdell Regional Center for the Arts, under a lease from the City of Manistee
Best months: Year-round
Address: 101 Maple Street, Manistee
Parking: No parking or drop-off on Maple Street. Free parking is listed on First Street, at the Methodist Church lot, at the public library lot, behind the Vogue Theatre and on River Street.
Accessibility: ADA accessible doors are under the marquee, an elevator serves the basement (with restrooms) through the balcony level, and accessible seats are on the first level, house right. Hearing assistance is available on request. Mention seating needs when you buy and confirm with the theatre.
Tickets: Buy online through the link on the theatre's own site, by phone or in person at the office, or at the box office an hour before a show. The theatre warns that tickets from resale sites will not be honored.
What's on: The Ramsdell Regional Center for the Arts publishes its calendar online; not every event is sold through the same ticketing site, so check the full calendar.
Official website: ramsdelltheatre.org

Location

Map of Ramsdell Theatre

4 places on an OpenStreetMap map

Nearby towns

A white lighthouse at the end of a pier with a catwalk, seen across calm Lake Michigan water

Ludington & Manistee

Manistee

A Lake Michigan port city where the river meets the lake, with a historic downtown riverwalk, three city beaches and a pierhead light to climb in season.

Under a mile away (straight line)