The Opera House Theatre in Philipsburg, Montana has had a storied history. It originally opened its doors in 1891 and continues to put on shows to this day, giving it the distinction of being the oldest still-operating theatre in the entire state of Montana. The building itself, originally inaugurated as the old McDonald Opera House Theatre, has hosted many businesses. Not only has the theatre itself changed ownership time and time again, but lots of other industries have made use of the site. These include a bank and even a bottling company for soda pop, among others. In the 1980s, finances were tough, and the building was at risk of demolition. The site was bought out by Andrew Crow, a pianist, who kept it afloat before selling to Tim and Claudette Dringle, who had a plan to resurrect the old theatre, reviving it back to its former glory.
Their efforts were successful, and the Philipsburg Theatre, as is their preference for it to now be called, continues to thrive. The theatre is not the only thing they resurrected, however. Although not brought back completely to life in a fully corporeal way, some number of ghosts rose up from the metaphorical ashes of the theatre along with it when it came back to life. No one can say for sure who the spirits were before their deaths, but entire apparitions have been spotted many times within the Opera House Theatre. They will usually appear in dark areas, including lighting booths during a packed show. Although people have not reported anything especially malevolent, the spirits seem to have a mischievous side. One of the most common paranormal phenomena that people visiting the Opera House Theatre have encountered is having their hair pulled from behind, though thankfully not hard enough to cause too much pain.
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