The Vancouver Orpheum Theatre - Research Paper Example

The Vancouver Orpheum Theatre Introduction The Orpheum is one of the most spectacular concert halls located on Granville Street in North America. It was designed by Marcus Priteca: a Scottish architect and was built in 1927 within duration of 10 months (City of Vancouver, Para 1). The Iconic theatre hosts music concerts, comedy shows, and fundraising, among others. The theatre constitutes murals on every room, gilded mirrors, ornate chandeliers, plush carpeting, among others. Over the years, people such as Monroe, Garbo, Lancaster, Jack Benny, utilized the Orpheum stage. By 1969, the Orpheum faced stiff competition from television and 3D film theatres. As a result, some experts decided to investigate on aspects of increasing the income of the facility. Their plan to convert the enormous theatre to a multiplex succeeded, and Orpheum is still one of the best theatres in the world (Bollwitt, Para 4). The Orpheum was saved by funding from the various facets of the government and donations that amounted to $432,000. After its restoration, the theatre was re-opened in 1977 and featured the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. In 1995, it was advanced and it was renovated again in 2009 and became a National Historic Site (Bollwitt, Para 6). Development of Vancouver first to the fourth Orpheum theatre (1900- 1950) The first Orpheum was a concert hall that was opened by Gustave Walters in 1887 at a place known as San Francisco. The concert hall was named after a Greek god; Orpheus, who used to sing and play his lyre so well that it used to fascinate the wild beast during that period. More so, the first short-lived and independent Vancouver’s Orpheum was opened in 1904, and was located at Westminster Avenue. However, it stayed in business for a few months (Dance Collection Danse, Para 1). Figure 1 The first Orpheum (1904) by Dahlberg Photo Credit: The workbook of B. Marcus Priteca, 1927 Timothy Sullivan and John Considine ran the second Orpheum theatre. In this regard, they began to control the Savoy theatre that was located at Cordova Street. However, it was found to be small, thus they decided to control a ‘people’s theatre’ that was originally known as Alhambra. The theatre that was located in a place called Northwest corner, was built in 1899. Considine and Sullivan converted the theatre into the city’s second Orpheum theatre in 1906. The theatre constituted of fold-up theatre seats, a seating capacity for one thousand two hundred people and uniformed workers. The theatre made an historic impact because Charlie Chaplin and Fred Karno’s Company of British comedians utilized the theatre to entertain people on 8th April 1912 (Dance Collection Danse, Para 2). Figure 2 The second Orpheum by Dahlberg Photo Credit: The workbook of B. Marcus Priteca, 1927 However, the Orpheum was closed when Considine and Sullivan bought the Vancouver Opera house, which later became the third Orpheum in 1913. During that period, the Orpheum became the Vancouver and later changed to an international Cinema, which was again converted to the lyric before it was demolished in 1969 so as to pave way for the creation of Eaton’s department store (Dance Collection Danse, Para 4). Before the end of 1914, Considine and Sullivan holdings controlled the Chicago-based Orpheum that was known as Vaudeville circuit. Figure 3 The third Orpheum by Dahlberg Photo Credit: The workbook of B. Marcus Priteca, 1927 It is the fourth and current Orpheum theatre, and was opened on 8th November 1927. The theatre is one of the best vaudeville theatres in North America and is highly ranked among Vancouver theatres because of its outstanding acoustics and magnificent beauty (Dance Collection Danse, Para 5). Figure 4 Internal view of the fourth Orpheum Theatre Photo credit: Pomax on Flickr Figure 5 The fourth Orpheum Theatre; 8th November 1927 by Dahlberg 1929 – VPL Accession Number: 11035. Photographer: Leonard Frank Figure 6 The Vaudeville: A show featuring Blossom Seeley Photo credit: photojesse on Flickr How Fred Karnos Company, Lily Laverock and Joseph Francis affected the show business at Orpheum Theatre. Fredrick John Westcott whose stage name is Fred Karno was born on 26th March 1966 and later died on 18th September 1941. Karno was a theatre impresario in Britain. In 1890s, Karno came up with a non-dialogue sketch comedy that was very unique. For instance, he came up with a play known as ‘Jail birds’, in which inmates played tricks on wardens and another play known as ‘Early birds’, in which a small man defeated an enormous ruffian (New York Times, Para 4). Karno worked with young comedians such as Arthur Jefferson and Charlie Chapman. In May, 1911, Chaplin Charlie tagged along Fred Karno Company to Vancouver so as to show the play ‘playing the drunk ‘that turned out to be immensely popular. The crowd was large because people wanted to experience and see the unique English performance. The crowd was entertained by main star: Chaplin, who used hilarious gestures to express his action. The film Terrible Turk that was performed by Chaplain who was supported by Karno Company became the best comedy. As a result, it was expedited down the coast and back to East before it returned to Vancouver Orpheum theatre. Because of its popularity in 1912, the Vancouver Orpheum created an extra show, which brought extra money to the Orpheum (Vancouver World. Com, Para 4). Figure 7 Photographs of Charlie Chaplin and Fred Karnos Company Photo Credit: The workbook of B. Marcus Priteca, 1927 Lily Laverock was the first lady reporter at Vancouver and the founder of University Women club in the same region. She began to work as an impresario in 1921, and created international Celebrity Concert in the subsequent years. The concerts constituted famous celebrities such as Nellie Melba, Geraldine Farrar, Frtiz Kreisler. Such figures contributed a lot to the musical facet of Vancouver. She temporarily postponed her concert sponsorship during the initial stage of Second World Two (Chuck, Pg 19). More so, Joe Francis was an hotelier and the first informal mayor of Vancouver. He worked in a number of industries before showing an interest in Granville hotel, which is close to the Orpheum theatre. The Orpheum theatre became known through people having meals and meetings at Granville hotel (Chuck, Pg 25). Figure 8 Photograph of Fritz Kreislers Program Photo Credit: Vancouver Public Library Importance of the first to fourth Orpheum theatre As established by Tour by Transit.com (Para 1), the latest Orpheum offers entertainment venue for movie premieres, live concerts, and theatre productions. The Orpheum is a perfect example of the 1920’s design. It constitutes a large seating capacity for approximately 2000 individuals. Additionally, it has spacious lobby areas and prolific interior that provides an exotic luxurious atmosphere. Furthermore, the Orpheum’s common areas are decorated with a number of repetitive motifs like colonnades, which offer constant visual stimulations. The stage is completely improved with new electrical and rigging so as to make it more user-friendly to film companies, movie and song producers. The Orpheum is seen as home to the Mighty Wurlitzer, which was among the last great theater organs that remained on Broadway. In addition, it is among the only three original theater facets that exist in Southern California theaters. Its orchestra pit can accommodate sixteen musicians. The theatre constitutes of an exceptional natural acoustics and 24-speaker Dolby surround sound. The audio system is important for any form of event (Tour by Transit.com, Para 6). The Orpheum was an essential landmark in the enhancement of Granville Street as an entertainment milieu from the early 1920’s to the mid 1940’s. Most prestigious acts have used the stage, in which a number of them are linked to the Orpheum Circuit productions. Spectators have been entertained by vaudeville acts and movies from some of the world’s known artists. Also, the Orpheum hosted the first radio station in Vancouver and is viewed as the home to Star wall Gallery and Star walk, which are essential in honoring the British Columbians who excelled in all areas of entertainment (Dahlberg, Para 9). The theatre was among the first large-scale traditional conservation project to take place in Vancouver. Firms such as the Berwick, Thompson, and Pratt together with his partners renovated the theatre between 1974 and 1977. Currently, the Orpheum theatre is perceived as one of the best premier concert hall and a place where the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra take place. Conclusion The Orpheum theatre is an essential facet as it represents the heritage of Vancouver. It triggered the development of other entertainment aspects such as 3D films, television, and radio. People should appreciate the origin of the Orpheum theatre because it introduced the creation of theatre design around the globe. The theatre can act as tourism attractions, where people around the globe can visit the place, thus appreciate the culture of Vancouver. Lastly, Orpheum theatre is an iconic structure because famous individuals graced the stage. Works Cited Bollwitt, Rebecca. Vancouver History: The Orpheum. 2010. Web. 31 January, 2014 City of Vancouver. The Orpheum. 2014. Web. 31 January, 2014 Chuck, Davis. The History of Metropolitan Vancouver. 2009. Vancouver: Harbor Publishing Dance Collection Danse. Four Orpheum’s. 2006. Web. 31 January, 2014. Dahlberg, Christian. Orpheum Theatre. 2012. Web. 31 January, 2014. New York Times. Fred Karno. 15December, 2009. United Press. The City of Vancouver. History of the Orpheum. 2010. Web. 31 January, 2014 Tour by Transit. Com. The Orpheum Vancouver. 2009. Web. 31 January, 2014. Vancouver World. Com. A Night in an English Club. May 6, 1911. Web. 31 January, 2014 Vancouver Historical Society." Vancouver Historical Society. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Jan. 2014 . Read More