For over one hundred years, the Orpheum Theatre has been a New York cultural institution and a beloved landmark of Manhattan’s East Village.

The Orpheum began its artistic life at the turn of the twentieth-century, as a beer garden and music hall catering primarily to Eastern European immigrants; it’s raucous environment led to it being lovingly dubbed “Tinkle Tankle” by its patrons, a moniker lovingly adopted as well in a rave Times review that popularized the venue. By 1913, the Orpheum was a dedicated movie house, and changed hands many times and went through numerous renovations(including spending a period as a Yiddish theater during the “Jewish Rialto” era of Second Avenue) until opening as a venue for straight plays and musicals in 1958.