Burns Park in Ann Arbor in Washtenaw County, Michigan — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Town and Gown: Entertainment and Changing Culture

Photographed by Joel Seewald, July 10, 2021

1. Town and Gown: Entertainment and Changing Culture Marker

Inscription.

Town and Gown: Entertainment and Changing Culture. . , The 1954 Michigras parade, with elaborate student floats, passed the Michigan Theater on its way up Liberty Street. The parade and the theater were part of an entertainment tradition of "gown" and "town" coming together to shape Ann Arbor's cultural identity. , , In the nineteenth century local acts and touring companies played in downtown ballrooms, churches, the courthouse, and Hangsterfer's Hall. Students, faculty, and townspeople contributed talent and enthusiastic audiences. In 1871 Ann Arbor's first real theater, Hill's Opera House with 2,000 seats, opened on Main Street. Local actors in "The Spy of Shilho" packed the house. On campus that same year the cornerstone was laid for University Hall, with a 3,000-seat auditorium for concerts, graduations, and the town's largest events. Many celebrated guests appeared, including lecturers Ralph Waldo Emerson, Susan B. Anthony, and Mark Twain, actress Sarah Bernhardt, and dancer Vaslav Nijinsky. After 1913 audiences attended the new and larger Hill Auditorium. , , The Michigan Theater opened in 1928, dedicated to "the faculty and students of the University of Michigan and the residents of Ann Arbor." A full orchestra and the Barton theater organ accompanied live shows and silent films. The following year, Broadway stars first performed in Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre in the UM's new Michigan League. The Ann Arbor Symphony, Civic Theater, and UM Gilbert and Sullivan Society continued the tradition of combining town and gown through the twentieth century. , , Top image caption: , Michigras Parade, 1954 , , Top image, bottom left insert caption: , Proclaimed a "Shrine of Entertainment" when it opened in 1928, the Michigan Theater boasted an army of uniformed ushers. , , Bottom image caption: , In 1859 Les Sans Sousi (below), which also called itself The University Band, was one of several early musical groups organized by students. Frederick Arn (far left) was killed three years later at the Battle of Shiloh in the Civil War. , , Bottom image, top left inset caption: , Catering to the dance craze spawned during Prohibition, the Ritz Dine and Dance opened at 209 State Street in 1930 featuring "music and dancing at all hours." One could dance nearby at The Hut, The Den, Drake's Sandwich Shop, and Granger's Dancing Academy. , , Bottom image, top right inset caption: , "Michigenda," Michigan Union Opera's first production, was staged at the Whitney Theater, formerly Hill's Opera House, in 1908. , , Sponsors , Oxford Companies , Ed and Judi Davidson , , Photos courtesy of the Bentley Historical Library State Theater LLC

The 1954 Michigras parade, with elaborate student floats, passed the Michigan Theater on its way up Liberty Street. The parade and the theater were part of an entertainment tradition of "gown" and "town" coming together to shape Ann Arbor's cultural identity.

In the nineteenth century local acts and touring companies played in downtown ballrooms, churches, the courthouse, and Hangsterfer's Hall. Students, faculty, and townspeople contributed talent and enthusiastic audiences. In 1871 Ann Arbor's first real theater, Hill's Opera House with 2,000 seats, opened on Main Street. Local actors in "The Spy of Shilho" packed the house. On campus that same year the cornerstone was laid for University Hall, with a 3,000-seat auditorium for concerts, graduations, and the town's largest events. Many celebrated guests appeared, including lecturers Ralph Waldo Emerson, Susan B. Anthony, and Mark Twain, actress Sarah Bernhardt, and dancer Vaslav Nijinsky. After 1913 audiences attended the new and larger Hill Auditorium.

The Michigan Theater opened in 1928, dedicated to "the faculty and students of the University of Michigan and the residents of Ann Arbor." A full orchestra and the Barton theater organ accompanied live shows and silent films. The following year, Broadway stars first performed in Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre in

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the UM's new Michigan League. The Ann Arbor Symphony, Civic Theater, and UM Gilbert and Sullivan Society continued the tradition of combining town and gown through the twentieth century.

Top image caption:
Michigras Parade, 1954

Top image, bottom left insert caption:
Proclaimed a "Shrine of Entertainment" when it opened in 1928, the Michigan Theater boasted an army of uniformed ushers.

Bottom image caption:
In 1859 Les Sans Sousi (below), which also called itself The University Band, was one of several early musical groups organized by students. Frederick Arn (far left) was killed three years later at the Battle of Shiloh in the Civil War.

Bottom image, top left inset caption:
Catering to the dance craze spawned during Prohibition, the Ritz Dine and Dance opened at 209 State Street in 1930 featuring "music and dancing at all hours." One could dance nearby at The Hut, The Den, Drake's Sandwich Shop, and Granger's Dancing Academy.

Bottom image, top right inset caption:
"Michigenda," Michigan Union Opera's first production, was staged at the Whitney Theater, formerly Hill's Opera House, in 1908.

Sponsors
Oxford Companies
Ed and Judi Davidson

Photos courtesy of the Bentley Historical Library State Theater LLC

Erected by

Photographed by Joel Seewald, July 10, 2021

2. Town and Gown: Entertainment and Changing Culture Marker

View looking toward the north along South State Street.

Ann Arbor Historical Foundation.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, Music • Entertainment. A significant historical year for this entry is 1954.

Location. 42° 16.761′ N, 83° 44.443′ W. Marker is in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in Washtenaw County. It is in Burns Park. It is at the intersection of South State Street and East Liberty Street, on the right when traveling north on South State Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 233 South State Street, Ann Arbor MI 48104, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southeast Michigan

and in Greater Detroit.

It is also in the American Midwest

and on the Great Lakes.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Ideation Building (a few steps from this marker); The James Foster House of Art (within shouting distance of this marker); Michigan Theatre (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The University Expands (about 300 feet away); A Second Shopping District (about 400 feet away); Ann Arbor High School (about 400 feet away); Uptown Theaters (about 400 feet away); From Liveries to Taxis (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Ann Arbor.

Also see . . . Downtown Ann Arbor Historical Street Exhibit: Site 12. State and Liberty. Web page that includes a clear image of the marker with a plain white background. (Submitted on July 14, 2021, by Joel Seewald of Madison Heights, Michigan.)

Credits. This page was last revised on February 12, 2023. It was originally submitted on July 14, 2021, by Joel Seewald of Madison Heights, Michigan. This page has been viewed 332 times since then and 18 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on July 14, 2021, by Joel Seewald of Madison Heights, Michigan.