Erected in 1859 at a cost of $118,000, the Old French Opera House was opened to the public on December 1, 1859 and brought with it the creme of high society. Considered a masterpiece of Greek Revival architecture, it was designed by James Gallier, architect of Gallier Hall and many other classic 19th-century buildings. The opera house featured an elliptical auditorium decorated in red and white, where 1,800 people could sit in four tiers.
Its colonnaded front measured 166 feet along Bourbon Street and 187 feet on Toulouse Street; an 80-foot high loft towered above the buildings of the French Quarter. In the loges of the opera house, screened boxes were set aside for pregnant ladies, ladies in mourning, and elegantly dressed "madams" from nearby Storyville.
New Orleans Louisiana Hotel History - Old French Opera House -
Step back into the glamour of a bygone era with a stay at the Inn on Bourbon, a classic New Orleans French Quarter hotel on the corner of Toulouse and Bourbon Streets, located on the site of the Old French Opera House. One of the earliest opera houses in America, it served as a cultural center for New Orleans Creole high society for 60 years. Our classic hotel recalls the splendor of the 1859 opera house, echoing the Greek Revival design with elegant front colonnades and arching picture windows.
The Inn on Bourbon - A Historical Reincarnation -
For 60 years after its opening in 1859, the French Opera House reigned as New Orleans' cosmopolitan cultural center, hosting hundreds of operas and offering a gathering place for Creole society. In 1919, it burned to the ground. Today, the spirit of the Old French Opera House lives on at the Inn on Bourbon, where locals and visitors alike gather to soak up the sights and sounds of Bourbon Street history. An indention at the entrance of our hotel was the spot where fancy carriages parked to discharge elegantly dressed passengers.It is the only relic of the French Opera House that remains.
