Powell Hall (formerly known as the St. Louis Theater and Powell Symphony Hall) is the home of the

St. Louis Symphony The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1880 by Joseph Otten as the St. Louis Choral Society, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra is the second-oldest professional symphony o ...

. Erected in 1925 as the St. Louis Theatre, the theatre presented live vaudeville and motion pictures. The theatre was acquired by the St. Louis Symphony Society in 1966 and renamed Powell Symphony Hall after Walter S. Powell, a local St. Louis businessman, whose widow donated $1 million towards the purchase and use of this hall by the symphony. The hall seats 2,683. The building is a

contributing property In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic dist ...

of the Midtown Historic District on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. Powell Hall is part of the

Grand Center Arts District, St. Louis The Grand Center Arts District is located in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, north of the Saint Louis University campus. Referred to colloquially as Grand Center, the neighborhood's formal name is Covenant Blu Grand Center. The List of neighborh ...

History

The building was originally called The St. Louis Theater. It was built in 1925 with 4,100 seats, designed by the

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

architectural firm of

Rapp & Rapp C. W. & George L. Rapp, commonly known as Rapp & Rapp, was an American architectural firm famed for the design of movie palaces and other theatres. Active from 1906 to 1965 and based in Chicago, the office designed over 400 theatres, includ ...

. The theater spent the first 40 years of its existence as a stage for live

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

performances as well as

motion pictures A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

. The last movie shown in the old theater was ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. ...

'' in 1966. At that time, the building was acquired by the Symphony Society for $500,000, through a gift from Oscar Johnson Jr.. After spending an additional $2 million to update and renovate the theater, the hall re-opened in January 1968 as the new home of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra.

Carl Stalling Carl William Stalling (November 10, 1891 – November 29, 1972) was an American composer, voice actor and arranger for music in animated films. He is most closely associated with the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' shorts produced by War ...

, famous for providing the music to Warner Bros.' ''

Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American media franchise produced and distributed by Warner Bros. The franchise began as a series of animated short films that originally ran from 1930 to 1969, alongside its spin-off series ''Merrie Melodies'', during t ...

'' animated series, began his musical career as an

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

at the St Louis Theater.

St. Louis Speakers Series

Since 1998, Powell Hall has been home to the St. Louis Speakers Series. Currently presented by

Maryville University Maryville University of St. Louis is a private university in Town and Country, Missouri, United States. It was founded on April 6, 1872, by the Society of the Sacred Heart and offers more than 90 degree programs at the undergraduate and graduate ...

, the St. Louis Speakers Series presents seven events each season, and is available only by full-season subscription.

2023 renovations and expansions

The St. Louis Symphony announced in January 2023 that Powell Hall will see the start of a major revitalization project in spring 2023, the first since 1968. “We will preserve the history of Powell Hall while creating a state-of-the-art center for community, innovation, and powerful music experiences," SLSO President and CEO Marie-Hélène Bernard said in a statement. The expansion will include: a 3,660-square-foot Education and Learning Center with rehearsal space and a venue for educational programs, receptions, and community gatherings. A three-story lobby with overlooking terraces and enhanced amenities. Significantly more backstage space for artists, with amenities like dressing rooms, a musician lounge, music library, practice spaces, recording studios, and more. New passenger drop-off locations with more accessible entryways. Outdoor green spaces with areas for audiences to gather. While the venue undergoes construction, the SLSO said it will embrace the opportunity to engage new audiences with musical experiences throughout the community. The majority of performances will be at

Stifel Theatre The Stifel Theatre (originally known as the Municipal Opera House and formerly the Kiel Opera House and Peabody Opera House) is a civic performing arts building located in St. Louis, Missouri. About the venue Founded as the "Kiel Opera House" ...

Lindenwood University Lindenwood University is a private university in St. Charles, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1832 by George Champlin Sibley and Mary Easton Sibley as The Lindenwood School for Girls, it is the second-oldest higher-education institution wes ...

's J. Scheidegger Center for the Arts, and UMSL's Touhill Performing Arts Center. The revitalized Powell Hall is scheduled to open in 2025 to coincide with the building's 100th anniversary, according to SLSO.

Jack C. Taylor Music Center

SLSO leaders announced on September 18, 2024 that the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra’s expansion wing will be named the Jack C. Taylor Music Center.

Jack C. Taylor Jack Crawford Taylor (April 14, 1922 – July 2, 2016) was an American businessman and billionaire who founded the Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company. Taylor also was a fighter pilot for the United States Navy during World War II. Early life and e ...

, the late founder of

Enterprise Rent-A-Car Enterprise Rent-A-Car is an American car rental agency headquartered in Clayton, Missouri, in Greater St. Louis. Enterprise is the flagship brand of Enterprise Holdings, which also owns other agencies including Alamo Rent a Car and National ...

and a prolific donor to St. Louis arts organizations, made a $40 million contribution to help establish the orchestra's endowment trust in 2000, a donation noted at the time as the largest ever given to an American orchestra. The gift saved the institution "from the brink of bankruptcy,” according to an SLSO statement. Taylor also founded the Crawford Taylor Foundation, which made a $30 million gift to support the Powell Hall renovation and expansion said Marie-Hélène Bernard, the Symphony’s president and CEO. The Jack C. Taylor Music Center will encompass Powell Hall, plus the 64,000-square-foot expansion including an entrance lobby, education center and backstage wing for performers. The renovation and expansion includes new seats for the concert hall, which will see a reduction in capacity by about 500, though the new capacity of 2,150 will keep the venue in line with those of similarly sized orchestras in the U.S. A 3,400-square-foot extension on space previously occupied by a parking lot will include room for education programs and lectures, rehearsal space for the St. Louis Symphony Chorus and the St. Louis Symphony IN UNISON Chorus.

References

External links