Lyric Performing Arts Center

The Lyric Performing Arts Center is a music venue in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, located close to the University of Baltimore law school. The building was modeled after the Concertgebouw concert hall in Amsterdam, and it was inaugurated on October 31, 1894, with a performance by the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Australian opera singer Nellie Melba as the featured soloist. Beginning in 1904, it was also used for touring performances by the Metropolitan Opera, and from 1950, it was the home of the Baltimore Opera Company until that company's liquidation in 2009.

The Lyric Performing Arts Center
Exterior of venue, c. 2013
Former namesThe Music Hall (1894-1909)
Lyric Opera House (1909-2010)
The Patricia & Arthur Modell Performing Arts Center at the Lyric (2010-2021)
Address110 West Mount Royal Avenue
Baltimore, MD 21201-5714
LocationDowntown Baltimore
Public transitUniversity of Baltimore — Mt. Royal
OwnerThe Lyric Foundation
OperatorLyric Productions, LLC
Capacity2,564
Construction
OpenedOctober 31, 1894
Renovated1908, 1921, 1980-82, 2010-11, 2014
Tenants
Metropolitan Opera (1904-Present)
Lyric Opera Baltimore (2011-2017)
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (1916-82)
Baltimore Opera Company (1950-2009)
Website
Venue Website
Lyric Theatre
Coordinates39°18′20″N 76°37′9″W
Built1893
ArchitectT. Henry Randall
Architectural styleRenaissance
NRHP reference No.86000131
Added to NRHPJanuary 23, 1986

The venue was originally called The Music Hall at its founding in 1894. Between 1909 and 2010, it was known as the Lyric Opera House. When entrepreneur and football team owner Art Modell and his wife pledged a $3.5 million donation in 2010, it was renamed The Patricia & Arthur Modell Performing Arts Center at the Lyric in their honor. The name reverted to "The Lyric" on March 31, 2021. As the final installment was about to be paid, the Modell's say they were notified by Lyric executives of plans to remove the name, unless the family agreed to continue its contributions. They graciously declined.

The Lyric was home of the Lyric Opera Baltimore, founded after the demise of Baltimore Lyric Opera, from 2011 to 2017.

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