Arts & Entertainment
Lyric Oxford Honored as Best Stop in Mississippi
Huffington Post went from state to state, choosing the one thing each has to offer that you absolutely must hit, and Mississippi’s hot spot is an Oxford classic.
The Lyric Oxford was chosen for Mississippi’s top attraction, specifically listening to the blues at this historic building, now a music venue.
The large brick building at 1006 Van Buren has enjoyed an extremely interesting life since its construction in the late 1800s. The structure was a livery stable owned by William Faulkner’s family in the early 20th century, and during the 1920s, it was converted into a theatre for live performances and named The Lyric Theatre.
With the birth of motion pictures came the evolution of the theatre into Oxford’s first movie theater. The Lyric closed its doors in the 1970s and was abandoned for many years until it was restored and converted into office spaces and a health center in the early 1980s.
In 2007, The Lyric underwent an extensive restoration process and was returned to its original use as a theatre and began operating again in July of 2008. Now, crowds often pack the massive space and line up down the road to see popular live music acts from across the country as well as many local performances.
Beyond the dozens of concerts hosted every year, the Lyric is also a perfect rental space for any group needing an event on the Square, from large galas to a perfect Oxford wedding and reception.
Amelia Camurati is editor-in-chief of HottyToddy.com and can be reached at amelia.camurati@hottytoddy.com.
Erin
January 10, 2015 at 8:00 pm
and houses the best lunch and supper club – Oxford Canteen!
Brian Magee
January 16, 2015 at 5:16 pm
When I was at Ole Miss in the late 60”s, the Lyric and I forgot the other’s name. Everyone called the other one, which was nicer, the “one stick” and the Lyric was the “two stick” (1 stick to support your seat and the other to beat back rats.
The lyric had either horrible movies like “Billy the Kid Meets Dracula’s Daughter”, or the best movies like “The Graduate”
It was a dump, but it was famous at that time. Everyone used to take beer in there and no one said anything.
Glad to see it’s stil going strong