Grazer Orpheum

The Grazer Orpheum stands in the Lend district of Graz, a city in southern Austria. It occupies a building constructed in 1950 to replace the Grazer Varieté, which had operated from 1899 until 1936 and was destroyed in the Second World War. The Orpheum is one of three venues managed by the Grazer Spielstätten GmbH, alongside the Schloßbergbühne Kasematten and the Dom im Berg. Since the early 1990s it has been run by the city’s cultural office. Its two halls host rock, pop and jazz concerts, small-scale performances and children’s theatre, with exhibitions added to the programme. The Orpheum is recognised as the birthplace of Circus Roncalli. In 1975 Bernhard Paul and André Heller announced their new circus project on the square outside, using artists and a circus wagon as props. The venue also runs long-standing series such as Newcomer, the biggest band competition in southern Austria, and Let’s spend the Night together, a pre-Christmas charity gala. Weekly improvised shows, children’s puppet theatre and youth productions fill the calendar, alongside seasonal festivals and the Grazer Bluestage series. Inside, visitors find two performance spaces with varied programmes. The square in front has seen historic announcements, including Circus Roncalli’s founding. The surrounding Lend district offers cafés and galleries, linking the Orpheum to Graz’s cultural life. Exhibitions often spill into foyers and corridors, giving extra reasons to explore the building beyond scheduled performances.