Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
Portland’s grandest movie palace opened in 1928 as the Portland Paramount — a theatre of gilded Baroque ornament and Art Deco precision that has been the Oregon Symphony’s concert home since its 1984 renovation.
At a glance
The Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall sits at 1037 SW Broadway in the South Park Blocks of downtown Portland, its illuminated vertical sign and ornate facade one of the more recognisable streetscape features in the city’s cultural district. Built in 1928 as the Portland Paramount Theatre, the building was designed in a fusion of Italian Baroque Revival and Art Deco idioms typical of the highest-quality movie palaces of the late silent era. The Portland Paramount was one of the last major movie palaces constructed before the Depression halted large-scale entertainment construction across the country. It has operated continuously as a performance venue since its opening, and is today the primary home of the Oregon Symphony Orchestra.
Key facts
- Opened: 1928 (original name: Portland Paramount Theatre)
- Style: Italian Baroque Revival / Art Deco
- Seating: approx. 2,776 seats (concert configuration)
- Current tenant: Oregon Symphony (permanent home since 1984)
- Renamed: Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1984
- Address: 1037 SW Broadway, Portland, OR 97205
History
The Portland Paramount opened in 1928 as part of the nationwide Paramount Pictures theatre chain — one of the major studio chains that was investing heavily in cinema palaces as the silent film era reached its peak. The building was designed to impress: the exterior presents a tall vertical sign and a richly ornamented limestone facade with arched windows and Italian Baroque detail; the auditorium continues the theme with gilded plasterwork, painted murals, and a decorated ceiling whose scale competes with the grandest civic interiors in the Pacific Northwest.
The coming of sound film in 1927–1928 did not immediately affect the building’s success, and the Paramount operated profitably through the 1930s and 1940s as a first-run cinema. Like most downtown movie palaces, it faced declining audiences in the 1950s and 1960s as suburban multiplex construction drew viewers out of the city centre. The Paramount operated as a concert and event venue in its later years before the Oregon Symphony made it their permanent home in 1984, following a major renovation funded in part by a gift from Harold and Arlene Schnitzer — whose names the building has carried since.
The renovation converted the stage for orchestral performance and improved the acoustic treatment of the hall while preserving the Baroque ornament of the original auditorium. Subsequent acoustic upgrades have addressed specific deficiencies identified through performance practice, and the Schnitzer is today considered one of the better concert halls in the western United States.
What you see
The Broadway facade at night, with the vertical marquee lit in white and red, is one of the more photographed streetscapes in Portland. By day, the limestone exterior presents a classical severity that gives way to concentrated ornamental detail at the cornice and around the main entrance: brackets, cartouches, and moulded surrounds in an Italian Renaissance vocabulary, compressed into a precision that the late 1920s brought to everything it touched. The Art Deco moment inflects the Renaissance idiom at the corners and in the metalwork details — a combination that places the building very precisely at 1928, between one period and the next.
Inside, the auditorium is a single large room in the Italian Baroque tradition — gilded plasterwork, painted panels at the upper level, boxes arranged in two tiers on each side. The proscenium arch is wide and low, adapted to the concert configuration, with the orchestra shell permanently in place. The acoustic quality of the hall rewards listening from any of the main floor seats; the balcony is steeper than in many period theatres and provides excellent sightlines to the stage.
Practical information
- Events: Oregon Symphony concerts throughout the season (September–June); touring artists year-round
- Tickets: Oregon Symphony box office at the hall; third-party ticketing for popular events
- Allow: Arrive 30 minutes before a performance to view the lobby and auditorium
- Access: Lobby accessible before performances without a ticket
Getting there
The Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall is at 1037 SW Broadway in the South Park Blocks of downtown Portland. TriMet MAX light rail stops at Pioneer Courthouse Square (Blue, Green, Orange, Red, Yellow lines), 3 blocks north-east on SW Morrison. Portland Streetcar stops on SW 10th and 11th Avenues, adjacent to the block. Portland International Airport (PDX) is approximately 15 miles east via the MAX Red Line (direct, no transfer required).
Nearby
- Portland Art Museum — one of the oldest art museums in the Pacific Northwest, directly on the South Park Blocks one block south
- Oregon Historical Society — historical museum adjacent to the Portland Art Museum
- Pioneer Courthouse Square — Portland’s central urban plaza, 3 blocks north-east
Sources
- Oregon Symphony — official venue history (oregonsymphony.org)
- Portland City Landmarks Commission designation records
- Oregon Historical Society — Portland theatre history documentation
- Cinema Treasures — Portland Paramount historical record
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