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 The venue in 2008 | |
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| Address | 1 Hamilton Place Boston,Massachusetts |
| Coordinates | 42°21′22.4″N71°3′39″W / 42.356222°N 71.06083°W /42.356222; -71.06083 |
| Public transit | Park Street station (MBTA) |
| Owner | The Druker Company, Ltd. |
| Operator | Crossroads Presents |
| Type | Music venue |
| Capacity | 2,700 |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1852; 173 years ago (1852) |
| Renovated | 1915, 1971, 2009 |
| Architect | Thomas W. Lamb (1915) |
| Website | |
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TheOrpheum Theatre is a music venue located at 1 Hamilton Place inBoston,Massachusetts. One of the oldest theaters in the United States as designed by Snell and Gregerson, it was built in 1852 and was originally known as theBoston Music Hall. It was the founding location of theNew England Conservatory of Music in 1867 and it was the original home of theBoston Symphony Orchestra from its founding in 1880. The concert hall was converted for use as avaudeville theater in 1900. It was renamed the Orpheum Theatre in 1906. In 1915, the Orpheum was acquired byLoew's Theatres and substantially rebuilt. It operates as a mixed-use hall, primarily for live music concerts.
The theater has no connection with a different venue in Boston that operated as the Music Hall during 1962–1980, now known as theWang Theatre.
When the Boston Symphony moved to Symphony Hall in 1900, theBoston Music Hall closed. It was converted in 1900 to a design by Little and Browne, for use as avaudeville theater and operated under a number of different names, including the Music Hall and the Empire Theatre. The original organ, built in Germany, was removed in that renovation and rehoused in the purpose-builtMethuen Memorial Music Hall by 1909. In 1906, the venue was renamed the Orpheum Theatre. In 1915, the theater was acquired by theLoew's Theatres. Loew's reopened the Orpheum in 1916 with a completely new interior designed by architectThomas W. Lamb.
Operated by Loew's, the theater was at first a combination vaudeville and movie theater and later a straight first-run movie house. The Orpheum closed as a movie theatre on January 31, 1971. African-American business owner and activist Arthur Scott of Boston'sDorchester neighborhood obtained a 10-year lease on the venue and became its general manager.[1][2] Scott undertook a $125,000 ($970,522 in 2024) refurbishment, pledging to "present only top-flight entertainers".[1] It reopened as the Aquarius,[3] a live concert hall, on May 27, 1971, withJames Brown headlining.[4][2] The Aquarius name was used through at least January 1974, when the venue hosted a simulcast ofMuhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier II.[5]
From June 1971 to June 1978, the theater served as the home of theOpera Company of Boston, under directorSarah Caldwell, until that company moved to the currentBoston Opera House. It was the site of several significant American premiers including: BerliozLes Troyens (1972), VerdiDon Carlos in the original five-act French version (1973), ProkofievWar and Peace (1975), BerliozBenvenuto Cellini (1975), SessionsMontezuma (1976), GlinkaRuslan and Ludmila (1977), and the first major American production of VerdiStiffelio (1978). During that period, America's most popular diva,Beverly Sills, made annual appearances, performing:Norma,La Traviata,Daughter of the Regiment,Barber of Seville,I Capuletti ed i Montecchi,Rigoletto, andDon Pasquale.
The first half ofThe Police's 1995 double albumLive! was recorded at the Orpheum on November 27, 1979.U2's performance at the theater in 1983 was recorded and broadcast on theKing Biscuit Flower Hour. In 1984, the original lineup ofAerosmith re-formed with a performance at the Orpheum.[6]Tin Machine recorded a portion of their live album, entitledTin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby, at the theater on November 20, 1991. Portions of the March 3–4, 1992, shows at the Orpheum by theAllman Brothers were used on their 1992 live CDAn Evening with the Allman Brothers Band: First Set and the cover photo was taken in front of the venue's marquee.
Currently, the theater is owned by The Druker Company, Ltd. The contract to operate the Orpheum was acquired by Don Law, a Boston concert promoter, from theLive Nation entertainment company, in 2009. Law announced a major renovation for the theater, after which it reopened in late 2009.[7] Live Nation retains a stake in the operations of Law's company, Crossroads Presents.[8][9][10]
In 2019,Citizens Bank announced a 10-year agreement with Crossroads Presents including "presenting partnership deals" for several venues, resulting in the theater being branded as the "Orpheum Theatre presented by Citizens".[11]
The entrance to the theater, since at least 1976,[12] is the former alley entrance on Hamilton Place, replacing the original entrance onWashington Street,[13] which was converted into retail space.
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