Heinz Hall

Heinz Hall is a performing arts center and concert hall located at 600 Penn Avenue in the Cultural District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Home to the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) and the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra, the 2,676 seat hall presents about 200 performances each year. Originally built in 1927 as Loew's Penn Theatre, the former movie palace was renovated and reopened as Heinz Hall in 1971.

Built as the Loew's and United Artists' Penn Theatre, construction of the building started on January 6, 1926 and was completed in 1927 on the site of the former "Hotel Anderson". Motion picture business magnate and pioneer Marcus Loew engaged the architectural firm of Rapp & Rapp to design the movie palace. The Grand Lobby was particularly impressive, with its 50-foot (15 m)-high vaulted Venetian ceiling, massive ornamental columns, marble staircase, bronze and crystal chandeliers and silk drapes.

Like many 1920s-era film palaces, Loew's Penn fell on hard times in the 1960s. Competition from television and suburban theaters along with high maintenance costs put a squeeze on profitability. The theater shut its doors in 1964 and was scheduled for demolition. Plans were made to turn it into a parking lot. Henry J. Heinz II and Charles Denby, president of the Pittsburgh Symphony Society, together with the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Allegheny Conference and the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh, purchased the site and rescued the theater for the purpose of creating a new home for the Pittsburgh Symphony.

From 1967 to 1971, the building was extensively renovated. While the basic architecture of the building remained unchanged, the entrance was moved outwards and faced with a 40-foot (12 m)-high arched window. The one-ton chandeliers were rebuilt and their crystals replaced. The original polychrome decor was replaced by a brilliant white and gold design. Ornamental elements in the auditorium were replaced by acoustical baffles to convert the former movie theater into a lively sounding concert hall. The back of the building was extended, adding almost 30 feet (9.1 m) to the stage, and making space for dressing rooms, a music library, and rehearsal rooms.

The Grand Opening of Heinz Hall was on September 10, 1971.

In 1982, the Heinz Foundation sponsored the creation of Heinz Hall Plaza and a four-story addition to the hall.

In 1995, Heinz Hall underwent a further four-month, $6.5-million renovation, including a new orchestra shell, acoustical risers, new butterfly sound reflector, heating and air conditioning improvements, fresh paint, wallpaper and gold leaf and auditorium seats refurbishment.

Heinz Hall almost never existed because plans were being made for an entire $40 million cultural complex in the Upper Hill District, above the Civic Arena. This plan fell through when a new stadium for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Pirates took top priority. The Howard Heinz Endowment paid $850,000 for the closed and vacant movie house known as Pittsburgh's "Temple of the Cinema" in 1967. The Heinz family would also fund the multimillion-dollar renovation for the performing arts center that would house all local production companies.