Miller High Life Theatre (previously Milwaukee Theatre and originally Milwaukee Auditorium) is a theatre located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The building was extensively renovated between 2001-2003, at which point its name changed to the Milwaukee Theatre. A naming rights deal changed its name in 2017 to the Miller High Life Theatre. It seats 4,086 people and can be configured into a more intimate venue that seats 2,500. It is located at 500 W. Kilbourn Avenue in downtown Milwaukee.
Video Miller High Life Theatre
Milwaukee Auditorium
The Milwaukee Auditorium was built in 1909, in a place formerly occupied by the Milwaukee Industrial Exposition Building, which had been destroyed by fire in 1905. The Milwaukee Auditorium held 13,520 people, and had 104,952 square feet (9,750.4 m2) of exhibition space. The cornerstone was laid on August 1, 1908, and the building was dedicated on September 21, 1909. At that time philanthropist Elizabeth Plankinton donated a $10,000 pipe organ.
Historical uses included concerts, circuses, political rallies and sports events. For decades the Milwaukee Auditorium boasted its own orchestra, and hosted touring concerts from such historic notables as John Phillip Sousa and Enrico Caruso to contemporary stars like Barry Manilow, Nirvana, Marilyn Manson and Prince. Sitting Presidents from Taft to Clinton delivered important policy addresses in the Auditorium. On October 14, 1912, former president and then current presidential candidate Theodore Roosevelt delivered a speech at the Milwaukee Auditorium shortly after a failed assassination attempt that left him with a bullet in his chest. He was shot across the street from the Auditorium at the Gilpatrick Hotel by John Schrank, but declined to go to the hospital before giving his speech.
Structural and cosmetic improvements were made throughout the Auditorium's life, both before and after a major 1978 renovation brought in modern heating and air conditioning, restored architectural details and overall physical upgrades. However, by the time it was acquired by the new Wisconsin Center District in 1995, the Auditorium's continued viability was questioned - until a 20-day run of Riverdance, in 1999, shattered sales records and indicated that a market existed for a venue of its size.
Maps Miller High Life Theatre
Milwaukee Theatre
Beginning in October 2001, the Auditorium was converted into a theater. The project, which cost $41.9 million, was completed on November 7, 2003.
In January 2016, MillerCoors purchased naming rights from the Wisconsin Center District for $1.85 million. In April 2017, the name officially changed from the Milwaukee Theatre to the Miller High Life Theatre.
Since opening, The Miller High Life Theatre has hosted a wide range of convention, corporate, religious and political assemblies as well as Broadway musicals and other entertainment.
Notable events
- President William Howard Taft - October 27, 1911
- Former President and Presidential candidate Theodore Roosevelt - October 14, 1912 (Roosevelt shot before speech)
- President Woodrow Wilson - January 31, 1916
- Enrico Caruso - May 13, 1919
- John Philip Sousa - November 8, 1924 and September 21, 1929
- Premier of Lincolnshire Posy, an important composition for wind band by Percy Grainger performed at the American Bandmasters Association's 8th annual convention, March 7, 1937
- Milwaukee Auditorium Fire - December 24, 1937
- Presidential candidate Wendell Willkie - March 27, 1944
- West German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, June 15, 1956
- Liberace - August 2, 1957
- Van Cliburn - January 30, 1959
- Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy - October 23, 1960
- Martin Luther King, Jr. - April 27, 1964
- The Beach Boys - July 19, 1964, with The Kingsmen
- Johnny Cash - August 1, 1964 and October 29, 1973
- The Beatles - September 4, 1964
- Ray Charles - October 11, 1964
- The Rolling Stones - November 11, 1964, with The Ladybirds
- Louis Armstrong - November 13, 1964
- The Dave Clark Five - December 15, 1964, December 11, 1965 and July 5, 1966
- The Jimi Hendrix Experience - May 1, 1970, with Oz
- Queen - March 1, 1976 and January 13, 1977, with Cheap Trick
- Jackson Browne - November 7, 1976
- KISS (band) - February 1 and 2, 1977
- Frank Zappa - September 27, 1977, November 25, 1980 and December 1, 1981
- ABBA - September 29, 1979
- The Grateful Dead - February 4, 1978 and May 30, 1980
- Bob Marley & The Wailers - November 12, 1979
- Presidential candidate Michael Dukakis - November 1, 1988
- WCW SuperBrawl II - February 29, 1992
- Presidential candidate George W. Bush - October 23, 2000
- Presidential candidate Ralph Nader - November 1, 2000
- Prince & The New Power Generation - November 18, 2000
- Kenny Rogers - November 25, 2000
- Dolly Parton - October 30, 2005
- The Wiggles - November 3, 2007 (2 shows)
- James Taylor - May 9, 2009
- The Milwaukee Blues Festival - March 13, 2010 and March 9, 2012
- Janet Jackson - August 14, 2011
- Mindless Behavior - The #1 Girl Tour - July 27, 2012
- The fourth 2016 Republican Party presidential debate sponsored by Fox Business Network and the Wall Street Journal - November 10, 2015
- Presidential candidate Donald Trump - April 4, 2016.
- YouTube personnel Dan Howell (danisnotonfire) and Phil Lester (AmazingPhil) for their theatrical show "The Amazing Tour is Not On Fire." - May 29, 2016
References
Sources
- Hampton (1909). Hampton's Magazine. Broadway Magazine, Incorporated.
External links
- Miller High Life Theatre official website
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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