Orpheum Theatre Information
Orpheum Theatre – Omaha is one of the most famous concert hall venues in Nebraska. It, alongside its sister venues Holland Performing Arts Center and the organizations, Omaha Performing Arts, Omaha Symphony, Opera Omaha and the Omaha Community Playhouse are dedicated to providing the very best concert performance spaces around. This also includes being the place for guests to enjoy high quality entertainment and live shows including music concerts, recitals, operas, comedy shows, and other live performances.
There are dozens of Orpheum Theaters across the US, each providing a stage for some of the country’s most gifted performers. All venues host comedy shows, music concerts, and theatrical performances. Some, including the one in Omaha, are home to top Broadway productions.
A few things set the Orpheum Theater Omaha apart from its sister venues. Firstly, it’s the base of Opera Omaha, an internationally renowned opera company founded in 1958. For decades, this talented troupe has drawn in hundreds of thousands of visitors with its world premieres and imaginative interpretations of the classics.
One such performance was the debut of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ‘Requiem Variations’ in 1994. This ten-performance production alone attracted 21,546 guests, spurring Webber to say later in an interview: “It certainly seems that I’d like to come to Omaha and have another show again if they like me”.
The Omaha theater also stands out for its maze of grand lobbies and halls. The Lauritzen Lobby oozes luxury with marble countertops and intricate metalwork, while the Exhibition Lobby adopts a more utilitarian design. Incredibly, the Grand Lobby retains many original features from 1927, including crimson draperies and terra cotta drinking fountains.
However, the pièce de résistance is the 2,600-seat Slosburg Hall, named after two generous benefactors, Stanley and Eleanor Slosburg. This is where the main productions take place. People also hire the space for private and community events.
As for amenities, the Orpheum Theater has everything you’d expect from a venue that has undergone $13 million in renovations since 2002. There’s a private VIP lounge that serves complimentary drinks and nibbles. Plus, a 200-foot-long sky link that connects the parking garage and balcony level for unbeatable accessibility.
Theater History
The Orpheum Theatre was first built in 1927. At the time, the Orpheum Theater was a former vaudeville house and was managed by Omaha Performing Arts. In addition to being the home to Broadway in Omaha, the Orpheum also hosts shows and performances by Opera Omaha, the finest dance companies, stand-up comedians, contemporary music artists and other theatrical productions. And it has become synonymous with high-quality live entertainment in and around the city.
When vaudeville acts were no longer in fashion during the late 1930s – early 1940s, a screen was added and the theater operated as a downtown movie theater. This lasted from the 1940s through 1971. A year later, the Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben purchased the building and began a $2 million renovation and became a performing arts venue once more.
Then, in 2002, Omaha Performing Arts Society assumed management of the Orpheum Theater from the City of Omaha. The Orpheum then underwent a $10 million renovation, so it could welcome larger and more complicated scenery and sets as well as provide more that modern audiences expected.
Today, it is likely best known as serving events with a more theatrical setting, including the Omaha Performing Arts Broadway Season, presented with Broadway Across America, and Opera Omaha’s season. Because of its age and long-standing tenure as a performance space, The Orpheum Theatre is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Interesting Features and Facts
The main auditorium is a proscenium theater known as “Slosburg Hall”. The theater has a theatre organ, made by Wurlitzer.
The Feel of the Orpheum
But what is it like to come to the Orpheum Theatre – Omaha? What are the typical audiences like and how good of an experience can it be?
To start, the fun begins as soon as you arrive. With the Skylink system in place, it’s easier than ever before to get to the venue from your parking space without having to wait for traffic or deal with the hassle of the city streets. This convenience only continues as you arrive at the gate and meet some of the friendliest staff at the gate as well as within the venue. This makes it easy to relax and enjoy the revitalized interiors with designs that harken back to the golden age of Broadway in Omaha with all the thrills and class that that implies.
As for the audiences, many performing arts troupes consider the Orpheum to have some of the best crowds in the US. The city welcomes music lovers, comedy enjoyers, and all other forms of live entertainment fans and these audiences are some of the most welcoming in the country. So there’s always a positive energy that’s in the air that makes every show a chill and comfortable experience.