Austin's Millett Opera House, an 1878 landmark with 24-inch-thick limestone walls, is opening its doors this fall for a new kind of performance: a fundraising luncheon designed to turn its 148-year history into scholarship money for students. The inaugural Millett Legacy Luncheon is set for Thursday, November 5, 2026, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at The Austin Club in downtown Austin, according to the Millett Opera House Foundation.
The event listing, titled "Millett Legacy Luncheon," appears on CultureMap Austin. The event is presented by Alcon Ventures and will feature a performance by soprano Jasmine Williams alongside keynote remarks from entrepreneur, author, and artist Gay Gaddis. Individual tickets are available, with proceeds benefiting both a new scholarship fund and the Millett Opera House Foundation's ongoing stewardship of the historic building.
Culinary students from the Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts will craft and present a custom signature dessert for luncheon attendees, according to the Austin Chamber of Commerce. Their contribution joins the live performance element from the University of Texas College of Fine Arts, giving the luncheon a distinctly student-driven feel even as it raises money for future students.
Scholarship Fund
Scholarship Fund The luncheon will fund a scholarship program supporting deserving students in the College of Fine Arts at the University of Texas at Austin. The dual mission — preserving a 19th-century building while investing in 21st-century students — reflects what the Millett Opera House Foundation describes as its effort to link the venue's past directly to Austin's creative future.
Keynote speaker Gay Gaddis brings her own entrepreneurial credentials to the podium. She founded the Austin-based digital advertising agency T3 in 1989 and built it into the largest woman-owned independent agency in the United States before selling it in 2019, according to the McCombs School of Business.
A Building That Once Housed the Texas Legislature
The Millett Opera House's story stretches back to 1878, when master carpenter Charles F. Millett constructed the building using a design by architect Frederick E. Ruffini — who also designed UT Austin's Old Main Building. Per Wikipedia, the opera house's 800-seat auditorium was the second-largest performance hall in Texas at the time, protected by walls two feet thick.
In its late 19th-century heyday, the venue drew notable cultural figures. The Millett Opera House Foundation notes that William “Buffalo Bill” Cody performed there.
The building's role in Texas history extended beyond entertainment. The Millett Opera House served as a temporary venue for sessions of the Texas Legislature while the current Capitol was being built, according to the Real Estate in Austin blog.
From Public Lease to Private Ownership
The Austin Club, a private social club, began leasing the building in 1979. Austin ISD sold it to the Foundation For Preservation Of Historic Places in 2017, and the Austin Club now owns the historic structure. The club's history is described by Club + Resort Business. The luncheon will be held at the club's address, 110 E. 9th St. in Austin, CultureMap Austin reports.
The building today is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, a designation dating to 1978, per Wikipedia. The listing reflects the historic structure's continued adaptive reuse by the private club.
Twentieth-century renovations divided the original auditorium into three floors, but a section of the original hand-painted ceiling survives in a meeting room, according to Downtown Austin Blog.
The Millett Opera House Foundation operates under board leadership that includes Chair Michael Marks. With the Legacy Luncheon, the foundation is betting that a 148-year-old building still has plenty to give the city's next generation of students.
