The Riley Center, also known as the Grand Opera House and formally as the Mississippi State University Riley Center for Education and Performing Arts is a performing arts and conference center in Meridian, Mississippi. Added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972 and renovated in September 2006, it is remarkable for being preserved to its original beauty while incorporating the latest in modern technology and amenities. The Grand Opera House and the adjacent Marks-Rothenberg Department store were built in 1889 by two half brothers, Israel Marks and Levi Rothenberg. In addition to the extensive theater renovation, the department store was completely transformed into a state of the art conference facility. Together the theater and conference space make up the Mississippi State University Riley Center for Education and Performing Arts, owned and operated by Mississippi State University-Meridian Campus.
Read more about Riley Center: Riley Center Today
Famous quotes containing the words riley and/or center:
“Little Orphant Annie’s come to our house to stay,
An’ wash the cups an’ saucers up, an’ brush the crumbs away,”
—James Whitcomb Riley (1849–1916)
“Columbus stood in his age as the pioneer of progress and enlightenment. The system of universal education is in our age the most prominent and salutary feature of the spirit of enlightenment, and it is peculiarly appropriate that the schools be made by the people the center of the day’s demonstration. Let the national flag float over every schoolhouse in the country and the exercises be such as shall impress upon our youth the patriotic duties of American citizenship.”
—Benjamin Harrison (1833–1901)