The first Orpheum Theatre opened as a vaudeville house in 1887 at 119 O’Farrell in San Francisco. Later, other Orpheum Theatres opened in major cities across the nation. The San Francisco Orpheum burned down in the 1906 Earthquake and Fires[1]. It was temporarily housed in Chutes Theater[2] and later in a theater on Ellis before a second Orpheum was built at 147 O’Farrell between Powell and Stockton in 1909.
In 1929 the Orpheum moved a final time into the old Pantages Theatre at 1192 Market Street in the Civic Center. It is a lavish building with a white vaulted ceiling ringed by full-bodied lions. Reminiscent of a Spanish cathedral, the interior is decorated in red and gold. Its three levels seat 2,446.
In 1953, as going to the movies became more popular than going to the theater, the Orpheum was renovated to accommodate Cinerama – a large curved movie screen. It became one of six lavish movie houses that lined Market Street[3].
The Orpheum closed in 1968 and remained unoccupied for almost a decade. In 1977 it reopened as a theater for live performances and in 1981 was purchased, along with the Curren Theater and the Golden Gate Theater, by Shorenstein Hays Nederlander (SHN). The Orpheum has been remodeled twice to better support touring Broadway shows. It has hosted such hits as Evita, Mama Mia, The Lion King, Hamilton and Wicked. In 2021 the Orpheum, Curren and Golden Gate were acquired by Ambassador Theatre Group. Tickets can still be purchased through BroadwaySF[4].
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[1] 1906 Earthquake and Fires: https://thesanfranciscophoenix.com/?p=2849 [2] The Chutes on Fulton: https://thesanfranciscophoenix.com/?p=4051 [3] Market Street: story coming July 26th [4] Visit them at http://www.broadwaysf.com
