Boston orpheum theatre
Orpheum Theatre, located at 1, Hamilton Place, Boston, MA, is as much of a crowd puller today as it has been since it was constructed in 1852. Over more than 150 years audiences have been treated to the entire gamut of the entertainment world vaudeville, penetrating classical symphonies, movie masterpieces from silent movies to the walkie talkies, Broadway musicals, lectures by eminent scholars and in the present, mind blowing rock concerts, performances by pop artistes and contemporary theatre.
Small wonder then that the Orpheum is still one of the favorite theatres in Boston.The theatre began as a music hall and had three entrances: Bumstead Place (off Tremont St.), Hamilton Place (off Tremont Street, still used today), and Central or Winter Place (later Music Hall Place) off Winter St. Predominantly white, the long entry hall and smaller lobby, the gold handrails and marble steps would seem very ornate and ideal for elegant ballroom dancing which, in its early days, used to complete evenings at the theatre.
HISTORY: The Boston Music Hall established in November 1852 and seating an audience of 2500, was the scene of classical orchestral music in Boston, projected and represented by the Harvard Musical Association. Almost thirty years later, in 1881, it became the favored venue for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, which began its career here, only to leave years later for its very own Symphony Hall. For several years, the Boston Music Hall proudly housed the great organ, one of the worlds finest pieces of musical instruments. Later this was sold and removed during the time when the Music Hall was undergoing renovations. The Boston Music Halls former organ now resides in the Methuen Memorial Music Hall which was built especially for that purpose.
RENOVATIONS: Needing a new use now for the hall, the owner, William Morris, converted the type of shows to vaudeville and made several constructional changes as well to be able to present such shows. The auditorium was a rectangle with 2 balconies each with long side galleries, and clerestory windows high above. These balconies were removed and a proscenium stage (a stage in front of the curtain) was constructed. The side galleries were turned into loges. There was a hip roof and on the west side a 3-story wing. The Hamilton Place entrance took you to the south end of this wing. 2 new balconies were built in place of the concert platform. The rear of the orchestra floor was sloped. The lobbies and lounges were all redone. At this stage, one of the three entrances, called the Bumstead Place Entrance was closed. On Labor Day, 1900, the theatre reopened and the advertisements read "Continuous Refined Vaudeville Not Controlled by a Trust".
CHANGES: Then there followed a period when the famous theatre underwent some confusing changes in name. The Boston Music Hall underwent additional renovations with the addition of the Washington Street entrance and was called the Empire in 1904. It became the Orpheum in 1906. All this while the theatre was the most popular venue for vaudeville. During the span of one year, i.e. 1909 to 1910 the name was changed to the American Music Hall and then once more it became the Orpheum. Around this time William Morris sold it and his other theatres as well to Marcus Loew. It now became Loews Orpheum, featuring "pictures and vaudeville, 10-15-25 cents". The Orpheum was now a favorite among movie goers too.The changes continued. In 1915, Loew acquired additional land and closed the Orpheum and hired Thomas Lamb to remodel the Orpheum involving massive renovations and increasing seating capacity. Lamb removed the original hip roof and built a new, higher roof with an elevated stage-house. The west wall was rebuilt on the outer edge of the property thus making for more space. The Orpheum today boasts of a higher and wider auditorium. Lamb redesigned the Hamilton Place entrance without shifting its original location. The Orpheum reopened on January 20, 1916. This time the Music Hall Place entrance was closed.
The new Orpheum now featured continuous movies and vaudeville. This continued till early 1930s when the Orpheum replaced vaudeville with first-run double-feature films. Gone with the Wind played an exclusive long run at the Orpheum in 1939.Loews Theatre Company continued to run the Orpheum successfully till they abandoned it in 1972. It reopened as the Aquarius for a brief period when Sammy Davis was the first performer. By 1974 it once again became the Orpheum and this time losing the Washington St. entrance. By now movie shows were losing ground to operas, pop artistes and rock shows and theatre.Sarah Caldwells Opera Company began to perform here and continued to do so for some time. In the present time, the Orpheum Theatre hosts largely rock concerts featuring famous artistes, jazz concerts, and country music shows, all featuring famous artistes. It will be interesting to note that way back in the 1980s, a Paul McCartney film made its way to the Orpheum rather than the USA cinemas. The film drew crowds for about a couple of weeks. Also as recent as 2002, Godfrey Reggios "Koyaanisqatsi" was screened here in a special event with composer Philip Glass conducting a live performance of his score for the film. Those who were present would surely say that the event was superb.
THE MODERN ORPHEUM: Today the Orpheum Theatre continues to stand at 1, Hamilton Place, Boston, MA, USA.The original entrance on Washington Street, just down the street from the old Paramount in the heart of Bostons downtown shopping district no longer exists. One sees a retail store in that spot today. Now, if you want to go to the Orpheum, you must walk down a side alley to get in. Some famous singers and bands like Jill Scott, Bruce Springsteen, U2, Black Crowes have performed here.The once grand and ornate interiors of the Orpheum have mellowed in a way. This can probably be viewed as testimony to its popularity since 1852- the thousands of people who have milled through the theatre and sat in the auditorium. Or perhaps it is time for another renaissance.
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