LISBON, ND — Snuggled in the Sheyenne River Valley, Lisbon’s main street is all abuzz. The renovated Lisbon Opera House is about to host a performance of the melodrama “Millie Monka and the Salmon Cannery.”
The opera house first opened in 1889. The idea for the latest production came as a suggestion from two women from New York who were visiting their mother, who lived in Lisbon. They started in June and finished in January. It costs $20,000.
“They got everything up and running with raising money and getting blueprints done, and getting the building built, and by December they were putting on a production,” said Opera House volunteer Doneen Fraase.
In the early 1900s, farm families drove horses and buggies to watch traveling performers.
“It sure brought a lot of people in, you know,” said Opera House volunteer David Olson.
“They carried all the musical instruments, and props and