Serving as a cultural destination for the Lehigh Valley and beyond, Miller Symphony Hall is one of Pennsylvania’s most historic performing arts venues.  It serves as home of the Allentown Symphony Orchestra and as a performance space for a range of diverse artistic organizations, creating a vibrant cultural community for the entire region.

The Hall began its life in the 1800’s as a large, three-story central marketplace. The building was converted to a theatre in 1899 by renowned architect J.B. McElfatrick and renamed the Lyric. Today it is one of only a dozen of McElfatrick’s prized ‘Beaux-Arts’ theatres that has survived.

Once the home of vaudeville, burlesque and Broadway-bound theatricals, this beautiful theatre has showcased the comedy of Bob Hope, George Burns and Gracie Allen; the magical voices of Johnny Mathis, Tony Bennett and Placido Domingo; the stirring marches of the Allentown Band, and the remarkable sound of the award-winning Allentown Symphony Orchestra.

In 1959, with the help of Call-Chronicle newspaper owners Sam and Donald Miller, the Lyric was purchased by the Allentown Symphony Association (established in 1951) as a permanent home for its symphony orchestra and re-christened Symphony Hall. Since 1990, $12 million has been raised by the Allentown Symphony Association from public and private sources to improve the Hall and turn it into the leading performance venue it is today.  

Re-named Miller Symphony Hall in 2012 in honor of the family who saved it and who continue to support it today, the Hall has helped catalyze the redevelopment of Allentown’s urban core. In the Fall of 2018, the Lyric Room -- a cabaret-style space for intimate programming and events, for donors to gather during orchestra concerts and for the public to rent -- was unveiled. Renovations to this historic theatre continue to this day with more plans for future projects.  

We invite you to create some memories of your own at Miller Symphony Hall.