The Napa Valley Opera House was built in 1879 as one of the first "respectable" venues west of the Mississippi River. For the latter half of the 19th century, the Napa Valley Opera House was the cultural center for the region, until the decline of vaudeville and other pressures forced it to go dark in 1914.

The house was nearly destroyed until a few Napa Valley Opera House devotees spared it from the wrecking ball in the early 1970s.

For the last 15 years, the NVOH has been slowly restoring itself for a new future through a series of fundraising challenges, construction activities and visionary plans. The house came back to life in June 2002 with the opening of the Cafe Theatre; its historic main hall is expected to reopen in late summer, 2003, in all of its original splendor.