Haunted Folklore: Woodstock Opera House’s legend of Elvira is alive and well

Editor’s note: Whether or not you believe in ghosts and hauntings, this is one of several spooky tales of local lore that Shaw Local News Network will be sharing with readers in the spirit of Halloween.

Those who have been to the Woodstock Opera House might be familiar with the legend of Elvira. Woodstock residents also might have heard the legend by now.

But for the uninitiated, Elvira is a ghost who, according to legend, resides at the Opera House. Legend has it that Elvira jumped from the building. But that’s not the only story about her.

“There’s a lot of different stories about her,” said Joe Diamond, who will be having two Halloween shows at the Opera House this year.

Diamond said he grew up in the area and knows a lot about the history of the Opera House and Woodstock Square.

He added another legend about Elvira is that she hanged herself, but Diamond said he hasn’t been able to find much information about that story.

Diamond said the Opera House and surrounding downtown area have other stories. The Woodstock Square caught fire the same night as the Great Chicago Fire, and locals saw Harvard’s pumper truck heading down the train tracks and thought the truck would be heading for them. However, it was bound for Chicago and kept going, much to people’s chagrin.

The Opera House has had its own fires. As the story goes, two vagrants in the basement of the Opera House accidentally started a fire and, soon, the whole building was on fire. Despite the building being engulfed in flames, there was only one death – one of the vagrants.

Despite these stories, Elvira might perhaps be the most famous legend surrounding the Opera House.

Elvira has a designated seat at the theater, but attendees to Diamond’s Halloween shows won’t be able to reserve her seat – DD113.

“We’re not letting anyone buy the seat,” Diamond said.

Diamond added that he’s having a contest to determine who has the privilege of sitting in Elvira’s seat during his Halloween shows.

Elvira makes her presence known in the Opera House, clapping during performances, and sometimes her seat lowers on its own. Diamond said sometimes people even will see someone sitting in the dark at the Opera House.

Diamond said the Opera House isn’t the only local theater in America that has these sorts of legends surrounding it. He said many old theaters have a ghost light, or one light that stays on when the theater is empty, which is partially based on legend and partially practical.

“Every old theater in America feels haunted,” Diamond said.

He said the legends of the Woodstock Opera House stand out among old theater stories, with Elvira having her own seat, among other things.

“The Opera House is pretty unique as far as that goes,” Diamond said.

Even though the origins of Elvira’s story have been lost to history, Diamond thinks the fact people still are talking about Elvira is proof that these sorts of legends and stories resonate with people.

“I think that’s pretty powerful,” Diamond said.