The Temple, originally used for vaudeville and movies, is now used year-round for area events, live stage shows, plays, and concerts.[4]
History
Historic sign in front of theater
The Hamasa Shrine organization in Meridian had outgrown their building across town by the early 1920s and sought to relocate. The Shriners hired architect Emile Weil to design the building and construction began in 1923. After the Grand Ballroom was completed in 1924, the Shriners moved in and began holding meetings while the rest of the building was being built around them. The theater part of the building was completed a few months later, but for the first few months of operation only occasional travelling shows performed at the Temple. It wasn't until 1927 when the Shriners leased the Temple Theater to the Saenger corporation in New Orleans that the Temple was modified into a movie house that the venue became very popular.[5]
In 1973, after the Saenger's lease had expired, the Hamasa Shrine began restoration efforts ranging from repairing plaster damage and repainting walls to reupholstering seats and replacing carpets.[5] The Temple remained true to its original design with one exception: the lobby's terrazzo floor, inlaid with small brass stars, swastikas, and crescents, was edited during World War II. The swastikas, simply design elements when the theater was constructed, were removed.[2]
In February 2009, a businessman from Dallas, Texas, named Roger Smith bought the Temple and promised to restore the Temple and continue year-round programming.[5] Though many movie houses across the nation have been demolished, the Temple has remained in constant use.[2] Today the Temple is used year-round for area events, live stage shows, plays, concerts, Hamasa Shrine functions, and public screenings of classic movies.[4] It is a part of the Imperial Shrine Council, which consists of 191 Temples throughout North America.[6]
Acoustics
The design of the auditorium embodies curved and unbroken surfaces to insure quality acoustics, and a resonance chamber was built as a floor to the orchestra pit, increasing and enriching the tone of the instruments.[6] In spite of the size of the room and relatively large number of the audience, some shows, such as both of Tony Bennett's appearances at the theatre, are able to be performed entirely without microphones.[7]
The theater contains a Robert Mortontheatre organ – one of only two of the same type still installed in its original location in the state.[4] A white and gold console provides three 61 note manuals and 32 pedals to play 608 pipes arranged in eight ranks.[7] The pipes are contained in two chambers – one located either side of the stage. Each chamber contains four ranks of pipes and various percussion instruments ranging from bass and snare drums to xylophone, orchestral bells, and 12 special effects, known collectively as the "toy counter". These are special sound effects such as train whistle, car horn, and duck calls, which were meant to accompany silent films. This Robert Morton Console provides 120 stops to select the various voices and blends available, with 48 "pistons" allowing a pre-defined selection of stops to be instantly recalled. The organ sustained damage during rain leakage, but is now fully restored due to the efforts of the Magnolia Chapter of the American Theatre Organ Society.[3]
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