Downtown Walla Walla got a major boost with the 2011 renovation of the Gesa Power House Theatre, originally a power station built for the burgeoning Pacific Northwest in the 1890s.
The once beautiful and majestic building had fallen into disrepair over the years and had become an eyesore. Luckily, renovators looked past its broken windows and tattered brick façade.
They discovered that the interior of the Power House was a near match to the William Shakespeare-designed Blackfriars Theatre in London, where many of the famous playwright’s works were performed in the 1600s.
The Gesa Power House Theatre was lovingly restored to its former beauty in 2011. Thanks to generous contributions from residents, businesses and the civic community in Walla Walla, the once downtrodden theatre’s interior was restored to its former glory.
Ever since, it’s become a thriving venue for performances and events in Walla Walla.
Weddings, plays and shows are now performed there. Today, the theatre is listed on the National Register of Historic Buildings. Revitalization efforts to restore the building continue.
Restoration of nearly 250 window frames, window panes, windows and doors at Gesa are underway so that the inside of the theatre will match the lovely renovated interior.