The Virginia City Players perform melodramas, vaudeville acts, and variety shows at the historic opera house every summer, typically from late May through early September. The performances are broad, funny, and unapologetically old-fashioned — audience participation is expected and enthusiastically provided. This is not high art, but it is genuine fun and entirely in the spirit of what entertainment looked like in a 19th-century mining town.
The opera house building itself is original and worth seeing regardless of the show. Check the schedule in advance and book tickets early in July and August when demand from visitors is highest. The combination of a summer evening, the old building, and the deliberately hammy acting makes for a memorable experience.