''The Smoky Mountain Opry Theater'' (formerly known as ''The Miracle Theater'' and ''Louise Mandrell Theater'') is a theater established in 1997.

History

In Fall 1997, the theater was opened as stage for country singer

Louise Mandrell Thelma Louise Mandrell (born July 13, 1954) is an American country music singer. She is the younger sister of fellow country singer Barbara Mandrell, and older sister of actress Irlene Mandrell. Louise had a successful singing career in country ...

. In 2005, the theater was purchased by The Fee Hedrick Family Entertainment Group, while Mandrell performed her last show on New Year's Eve that same year. After a $15 million installation, the theater was reopened as "The Miracle Theater" on April 13, 2006. Its main play, "The Miracle" was performed from its opening in 2006 to its closing on October 22, 2011. The musical was about the life of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

. The musical consisted of live animals, sword-fights, and wire-harnessing angels and was composed by David Legg and written by Linda Nell Cooper. Other shows that were performed at the Miracle Theater included the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. In September 2007, the Miracle Theater received national attention when it spent about $90,000 on a

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...

advertisement, which indirectly criticized

Kathy Griffin Kathleen Mary Griffin (born November 4, 1960) is an American comedian and actress who has starred in television comedy specials and has released comedy albums. In 2007 and 2008, Griffin won Primetime Emmy Awards for her reality show '' Kathy ...

's Primetime Emmy Award acceptance speech. On November 7, 2011, the theater re-opened as "Smoky Mountain Opry Theater" with a "Christmas at the Opry" show. A variety show was also added in the beginning of the 2012 season. At the end of 2018, World Choice Investments, the owner of Dolly Parton's Stampede, purchased Fee Hedrick Entertainment (and therefore the Smoky Mountain Opry) for an undisclosed amount. In May 2020, spokesperson Pete Owens announced that the theater would be closed during the entire season due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. As of January 2023, the theater remains closed.

References

External links

* {{webarchive , url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200513105840/https://smokymtnopry.com/, date=May 13, 2020, title=Official website 1997 establishments in Tennessee Christian plays Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the arts and cultural heritage Music venues in East Tennessee Passion settings Pigeon Forge, Tennessee Stage portrayals of Jesus Theatres completed in 1997 Tourist attractions in Sevier County, Tennessee Variety shows