The Orion Amphitheater

Just west of Downtown Huntsville, Alabama, the Robins & Morton team gave the performance of a lifetime while building the city’s newest entertainment venue – the Orion Amphitheater.

The classical exterior looks like a structure from a different time, reminiscent of a Roman Colosseum, but when concertgoers enter the acoustically engineered, 8,000-seat basin, its technology and amenities are nothing short of state-of-the-art.

As its moniker — The Rocket City — suggests, Huntsville is a city on the rise. In 2021, it officially surpassed Birmingham as the largest city in Alabama, and on the heels of that announcement, U.S. News and World Report named Huntsville the No. 1 Place to Live in America. While the years brought economic investments from the tech, aerospace, defense, automotive, and hospitality industries, the city was missing a crucial community and gathering space.

Recognizing Huntsville’s proximity to the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound Studio and being only hours away from the country music epicenter of Nashville, Tennessee, the City and Huntsville Venue Group saw an opportunity to bring world-class entertainment to North Alabama.

Although the product of Matheny Goldmon Architects + Interiors, Robins & Morton, and David M. Schwarz Architects’ efforts is striking, it was a challenging build. From the amphitheater’s opulent design and inflexible budget and schedule, to global supply chain, material, and labor issues, the team had fewer than 15 months to bring the complex structure to life.

However, with unwavering teamwork and a shared commitment to reach their planned opening, the project team met their date. The Orion held a soft opening with a concert by country music star Jake Owen and held its official grand opening with a three-day music festival called The First Waltz, featuring artists with ties to Alabama. Just five days later, it completely sold out for the first time for Dave Matthews Band, proving the venue strikes a chord with music lovers.

Since then, the Orion has delivered a nonstop schedule of impressive headliners and the response from the artists and the community is enthusiastic. The Orion Amphitheater not only looks the part of a landmark but will be a key contributor to economic impact and tourism, earning its place in The Rocket City’s history.