Miller High Life Theatre (previously Milwaukee Theatre and originally Milwaukee Auditoriumhttp://www.milwaukeetheatre.com/newsArticle.asp?Article=20 ) is a theatre located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The building was extensively renovated between 2001 and 2003, at which point its name changed to the Milwaukee Theatre. A naming rights deal changed its name in 2017 to the Miller High Life Theatre. It seats 4,086 people and can be configured into a more intimate venue that seats 2,500. It is located at 500 W. Kilbourn Avenue in downtown Milwaukee.
Milwaukee Auditorium The Milwaukee Auditorium was built in 1909, in a place formerly occupied by the Milwaukee Industrial Exposition Building, which had been destroyed by fire in 1905. The Milwaukee Auditorium held 13,520 people, and had of exhibition space.William George Bruce, History and City and County. Milwaukee: S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1922. pp. 421-432. http://www.hellomilwaukee.com/BookFiles/Chap27_The_milwaukee_auditorium1.pdf The cornerstone was laid on August 1, 1908, and the building was dedicated on September 21, 1909. Elizabeth Plankinton donated a pipe organ.
Historical uses included concerts, circuses, political rallies and sports events. For decades the Milwaukee Auditorium boasted its own orchestra, and hosted touring concerts from such historic notables as John Philip Sousa and Enrico Caruso to contemporary stars like Barry Manilow, Nirvana, Marilyn Manson, ABBA, the Carpenters, and Prince. Sitting Presidents from Taft to Clinton delivered important policy addresses in the Auditorium.
On October 14, 1912, former president and then current presidential candidate Theodore Roosevelt delivered a speech at the Milwaukee Auditorium shortly after a failed assassination attempt on him across the street from the Auditorium at the Gilpatrick Hotel, by a saloonkeeper named John Flammang Schrank. Schrank shot Roosevelt, but the bullet lodged in Roosevelt's chest only after hitting both his steel eyeglass case and a 50-page text of his campaign speech titled "Progressive Cause Greater Than Any Individual", folded over twice in Roosevelt's breast pocket. Schrank was immediately disarmed, captured and might have been lynched had Roosevelt not shouted for Schrank to remain unharmed. Roosevelt assured the crowd he was all right, then ordered police to take charge of Schrank and to make sure no violence was done to him.
Roosevelt, as an experienced hunter and anatomist, correctly concluded that since he was not coughing blood, the bullet had not reached his lung, and he declined to go to the hospital immediately. Instead, he delivered his scheduled speech with blood seeping into his shirt.John Gurda. Cream City Chronicles: Stories of Milwaukee's Past. Madison: Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2016, pp. 189-191. He spoke for 90 minutes before completing his speech and accepting medical attention. His opening comments to the gathered crowd were, "Ladies and gentlemen, I don't know whether you fully understand that I have just been shot, but it takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose.".
Afterwards, probes and an x-ray showed that the bullet had lodged in Roosevelt's chest muscle, but did not penetrate the pleura. Doctors concluded that it would be less dangerous to leave it in place than to attempt to remove it, and Roosevelt carried the bullet with him for the rest of his life.Timeline of Theodore Roosevelt's Life by the Theodore Roosevelt Association at www.theodoreroosevelt.org
Structural and cosmetic improvements were made throughout the Auditorium's life, both before and after a major 1978 renovation brought in modern heating and air conditioning, restored architectural details and overall physical upgrades. However, by the time it was acquired by the new Wisconsin Center District in 1995, the Auditorium's continued viability was questioned – until a 20-day run of Riverdance, in 1999, shattered sales records and indicated that a market existed for a venue of its size.
Milwaukee Theatre Beginning in October 2001, the Auditorium was converted into a theater. The project, which cost $41.9 million, was completed on November 7, 2003.
In January 2016, MillerCoors, a joint venture between the Molson family through their MolsonCoors Beverage Company and South African Breweries, purchased naming rights from the Wisconsin Center District for $1.85 million. On April 25, 2017, the name officially changed from the Milwaukee Theatre to the Miller High Life Theatre, which then had become controlled by Molson following its acquisition of the Miller brands after InBev acquired South African Breweries.
Since opening, The Miller High Life Theatre has hosted a wide range of convention, corporate, religious and political assemblies as well as Broadway musicals and other entertainment.
Notable events
President William Howard Taft - October 27, 1911 Former President and Presidential candidate Theodore Roosevelt - October 14, 1912 (Roosevelt shot before speech) President Woodrow Wilson - January 31, 1916 Enrico Caruso - May 13, 1919 John Philip Sousa - November 8, 1924 and September 21, 1929 Premier of Lincolnshire Posy, an important composition for wind band by Percy Grainger performed at the American Bandmasters Association's 8th annual convention, March 7, 1937 Milwaukee Auditorium Fire - December 24, 1937 Presidential candidate Wendell Willkie - March 27, 1944Ronald H. Snyder, "Wisconsin Ends the Political Career of Wendell Willkie." Wisconsin Magazine of History. http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/wmh/pdf/autumn_04_wilke.pdf West German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, June 15, 1956 Liberace - August 2, 1957 Van Cliburn with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra - January 30, 1959 Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy - October 23, 1960Ocala Star Banner, Oct. 24, 1960 at 9. https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1356&dat=19601024&id=0I8UAAAAIBAJ&sjid=3QQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2313,4938013 Martin Luther King Jr. - April 27, 1964 The Beach Boys - July 19, 1964, with The Kingsmen Johnny Cash - August 1, 1964 and October 29, 1973 Ray Charles - October 11, 1964 The Rolling Stones - November 11, 1964, with The Ladybirds Louis Armstrong - November 13, 1964 The Dave Clark Five - December 15, 1964, December 11, 1965, and July 5, 1966 The Jimi Hendrix Experience - May 1, 1970, with Oz The Carpenters - October 24, 1972 Queen - March 1, 1976 and January 13, 1977, with Cheap Trick Jackson Browne - November 7, 1976 Kiss - February 1 and 2, 1977 Genesis - February 10, 1977 Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band - February 22, 1977 Bob Marley & The Wailers - November 12, 1979 Frank Zappa - September 27, 1977, November 25, 1980, and December 1, 1981 ABBA - September 29, 1979 The Grateful Dead - February 4, 1978 and May 30, 1980 Dire Straits - August 2, 1985 Presidential candidate Michael Dukakis - November 1, 1988Kenneth R. Lamke, Best, Worst of the 1980s. WCW SuperBrawl II - February 29, 1992 Presidential candidate George W. Bush - October 23, 2000Michael Finnigan, "Bush Charges Gore Seeks to Be Reform's 'Obstacle-in-Chief.'" Los Angeles Times, Oct. 24, 2000. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-oct-24-mn-41223-story.html Presidential candidate Ralph Nader - November 1, 2000 Prince & The New Power Generation - November 18, 2000 Kenny Rogers - November 25, 2000 Dolly Parton - October 30, 2005 Presidential Candidate Barack Obama - April 16, 2007 The Wiggles - November 3, 2007 (2 shows) James Taylor - May 9, 2009 The Milwaukee Blues Festival - March 13, 2010 and March 9, 2012 Janet Jackson - August 14, 2011 Mindless Behavior - The #1 Girl Tour - July 27, 2012 The fourth 2016 Republican Party presidential debate sponsored by Fox Business Network and the Wall Street Journal - November 10, 2015 Presidential candidate Donald Trump - April 4, 2016. Michelle Obama - March 14, 2019 YouTube personnel Daniel Howell (danisnotonfire) and Phil Lester (AmazingPhil) for their theatrical show "The Amazing Tour is Not On Fire". - May 29, 2016 Mariah Carey - March 15, 2019 Diana Ross - September 10, 2023
References
Sources
External links Miller High Life Theatre official website