The Orpheum

The Orpheum is Vancouver's grand historic concert hall, a 2,672-seat former vaudeville palace at 601 Smithe Street in the Granville Entertainment District. It is the permanent home of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and a National Historic Site of Canada. Step inside and you will see why: a gilded Spanish Renaissance-style auditorium, a painted domed ceiling and a crystal chandelier, almost unchanged since 1927.

A short history

Designed by architect B. Marcus Priteca, the Orpheum opened in November 1927 as a vaudeville house on the Orpheum Circuit. With around 3,000 seats, it was the largest theatre in Canada at the time. It soon became a movie palace, and for decades it showed films while still hosting concerts.

In the early 1970s, its owner planned to divide the auditorium into a multiplex cinema. A "Save the Orpheum" campaign followed, and the City of Vancouver bought the theatre in 1974. After a careful restoration it reopened on April 2, 1977, as a civic concert hall and the home of the VSO. It was named a National Historic Site in 1979, and a new entrance and foyer on Smithe Street were added in 1983.

What's on at the Orpheum

• Classical music: the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra's main season, including concerts like Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 1, plus choirs such as the Vancouver Bach Choir's Messiah.
• Film in concert: movies screened with a live orchestra, like La La Land in Concert and The Muppet Christmas Carol in Concert.
• Touring artists and talks: singer-songwriters, comedians, speakers and festival events throughout the year.

In December, the Orpheum is one of the city's busiest holiday venues. See our Christmas events guide for seasonal concerts.

Getting there

• Entrances: There are two audience entrances, at 601 Smithe Street and 884 Granville Street. The box office and will call are at the Smithe Street entrance only.
• SkyTrain: Vancouver City Centre Station on the Canada Line is about a three-minute walk. Granville Station on the Expo Line is about six minutes away. Many bus routes stop on Granville Street.
• Parking: There is no parkade attached to the theatre. Use street meters or nearby lots, such as the Metropolitan Towers lot at 930 Seymour Street, and allow extra time.
• Accessibility: A ramp at the Smithe Street entrance leads to orchestra-level accessible seating, and an elevator serves the balcony level.

Good to know

• Every audience member needs a ticket, including babies and young children.
• The venue asks guests not to wear scented products.
• Look down outside: the BC Entertainment Hall of Fame Starwalk runs along the Granville Street sidewalk.
• Vancouver Civic Theatres, which runs the Orpheum along with the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, the Vancouver Playhouse and the Annex, offers occasional guided tours.

Nearby

The Orpheum sits in the heart of downtown. The Commodore Ballroom is just a few doors north on the same block of Granville, and the Vancouver Art Gallery and Robson Street are a five-minute walk away. For a drink after the show, browse our Vancouver nightlife guide.

Quick facts

• Address: 601 Smithe Street, Vancouver, BC V6B 3L4 (second entrance at 884 Granville Street)
• Capacity: 2,672
• Opened: 1927, reopened as a concert hall in 1977
• Home of: Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
• Nearest SkyTrain: Vancouver City Centre (Canada Line)

New to local place names? See the Vancouver glossary.

Photo: MichaelThoeny, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons