Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts
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| Address | 1419 Basin Street New Orleans, Louisiana United States |
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| Coordinates | 29°57′47″N 90°04′10″W / 29.96312°N 90.06931°WCoordinates: 29°57′47″N 90°04′10″W / 29.96312°N 90.06931°W |
| Owner | Ambassador Theatre Group |
| Type | Performing arts |
| Capacity | 2,100 |
| Current use | Performing arts venue |
| Opened | January 1973 Reopened January 2009 |
| Closed | August 2005 |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
The Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts is a theater located in Louis Armstrong Park in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was named after gospel singer Mahalia Jackson, who was born in New Orleans. The theater reopened in January 2009, after being closed since the landfall of Hurricane Katrina (August 29, 2005).
It serves as the long-term residence of the New Orleans Ballet Association, the New Orleans Opera Association, and the Broadway Across America touring productions.
The 2,100-seat Mahalia Jackson Theater first opened in January 1973, with a performance of Giuseppe Verdi's Messa di Requiem starring New Orleans native Norman Treigle and the New Orleans Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Werner Torkanowsky.
Before Hurricane Katrina, it was the home of the New Orleans Opera Association and the New Orleans Ballet Association and held occasional performances by the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra and other groups. It was also the home of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra for about ten years, before the orchestra moved to the Orpheum Theater.
Diana Ross played a three-night, sold-out engagement at the theater in 1996. It was deemed one of the most successful pop concerts at the venue.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, the Mahalia Jackson Theater was severely damaged. The theater sustained 14 ft. of water, which damaged the motor control center, orchestra lifts, heating and air-conditioning controls, sewerage ejector pumps and other structural components. Following Katrina, repairs and upgrades were made including the addition of enhanced lighting and a new sound system, orchestra shell, ballet floor, and digital cinema screen. The cost of the theater renovation was around US$27 million, and was financed by local tax dollars, about $8.5 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and a $500,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
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