The Orpheum Theater creates excitement long before the show. In fact, the former vaudeville venue puts on a spectacular performance all by itself, a prelude to whatever play, movie, or concert takes the stage or screen. Even if you don't see a show here, visiting the Orpheum merits the price of admission.

The performing arts center, perched on the corner of South Main and Beale Streets, is a shrine of sorts, a grand old girl with glorious beginnings, a near-death experience, and then a miraculous restoration to her former beauty.

The Orpheum was born in Memphis in 1890 as the Grand Opera House. The name was changed in 1907 to the Orpheum, and the theater continued to bring in vaudeville acts for many years. A fire in 1923 destroyed the landmark attraction; a new Orpheum was built in its place in 1928, and it is essentially the three-story structure you see today. A massive restoration effort begun in 1983 returned the Orpheum to its former glory. Another renovation and expansion in 1996-97 extended the stage and made other structural modifications.