Lyric Theater, also known as Thespian Hall, is a historic

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

in Boonville,

Cooper County, Missouri Cooper County is located in the central portion of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 17,103. Its county seat is Boonville. The county was organized December 17, 1818, and named for Sarshell Co ...

, United States. It was built in 1855–1857, and is a two-story, rectangular

Greek Revival Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

–style brick building. From 1912 until 1976, it operated as a movie theater. The front facade features a portico with four unfluted Doric columns constructed of wedge-shaped brick. The building was enlarged in 1901. When originally constructed, the basement was used as reading room, the main floor was used as combined theater and lecture hall or auditorium, and the second floor housed the city hall, a

Masonic lodge A Masonic lodge (also called Freemasons' lodge, or private lodge or constituent lodge) is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also a commonly used term for a building where Freemasons meet and hold their meetings. Every new l ...

, and an

Odd Fellows Odd Fellows (or Oddfellows when referencing the Grand United Order of Oddfellows or some British-based fraternities; also Odd Fellowship or Oddfellowship) is an international fraternity consisting of lodges first documented in 1730 in 18th-cen ...

hall.] It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1969. It is located in Historic District D.

References

Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in Missouri Theatres on the National Register of Historic Places in Missouri Greek Revival architecture in Missouri Theatres completed in 1857 National Register of Historic Places in Cooper County, Missouri 1857 establishments in Missouri Boonville, Missouri {{CooperCountyMO-NRHP-stub