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Grandstreet Theatre is the home of Montana's longest-running community theatre with over 30 years of continuous service. Using volunteers from an exceptionally talented population, Grandstreet also trains K-12 students through the nationally-known theatre school. Each year, 8 to 9 plays and musicals enhance the 105 year-old red granite church structure, a true treasure for Helenans and guests to admire. One of two Tiffany stained glass windows in Montana plus an original window of hand-blown glass completes the original building design.
Built as a Unitarian Church in 1901, the facility included the sloping floor and the proscenium stage area as you see them today. Even then, early church documents indicated it was intended as a multi-use facility. The original architect's plans called for a church that was to have a stage, auditorium, box office and dressing rooms, hardly normal specifications for a church. But the Unitarians wanted a suitable facility for pageants, recitals, and dramas. In 1933, the Unitarian Church was turned over to the city to replace the original library facility that had been nearly destroyed by earthquakes. In its transformation from a church to a library, the entire complexion of the building was changed to make it more suitable as a library.
In late August, 1976, the ‘library’ again became available. A local architectural firm donated renovation plans, and Grandstreet Theatre's staff and members went into action. False floors and a mezzanine had to be carefully torn out, and carpenters were brought in to restore the tiered seating in the balcony and build a second exit stairway. The Helena/Lewis & Clark County Historic Preservation Commission has recognized the efforts of Grandstreet Theatre in restoring the theater to its former elegance with a historic preservation award.
In the summer of 2005, the main window on the front of the building was replaced to match the 1901 architectural plans which for some reason never was installed. This new window is a work of art by glass artist Barry Hood and woodcrafter Tim Carney. The window compliments the 1905 tiffany window that was installed in memory of a pastor’s wife, Clara Bicknell Hodgin. |
