The Moore Theatre

Opened in 1907, the Moore Theatre is the oldest operating theater in Seattle. That is over a hundred years of history within the same four walls.

First-time visitors tend to need a moment to take it all in: two levels, capacity for 1,800 people, and clear sightlines to the stage from virtually every seat in the house. The space is divided between the main floor and an upper balcony, and the acoustics do exactly the work that architects from another era knew how to design without the aid of modern technology.

The Moore’s current programming is broad: concerts, performing arts, film screenings, lectures, alternative theater, off-Broadway productions, and programs aimed at emerging young artists. But for anyone who arrives with grunge on their mind, what truly matters here is embedded in the walls themselves.

Guided Tours

On the second Saturday of every month, from 10 AM to noon, the Moore offers a free guided tour of the building. Advance booking is required and can be made through the theater’s official website.

It is a chance to explore the space at your own pace — the balcony, the backstage areas, the corridors that witnessed all of it.

Grunge at the Moore

Between the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Moore was one of the central stages of the Seattle scene. Three moments from that era stand out with particular clarity.

In 1988, Soundgarden recorded the EP Fopp here, released on the Sub Pop label. Two years later, in December 1990, Alice in Chains filmed Live Facelift on the same stage — one of the most important audiovisual documents the scene ever produced. That night had more than one layer: the opening act was a band called Mookie Blaylock, the name Pearl Jam was still using at that early stage. Chris Cornell also took the stage to perform two songs from his Temple of the Dog project.

On January 17, 1992, Pearl Jam filmed the music video for “Even Flow” here at the Moore, with Eddie Vedder hanging from the side structures of the venue floor. It became one of the defining visual images of rock in that decade. At the start of the video, Vedder addresses the camera directly: “This is not a TV studio! Josh, turn these lights out! It’s a fucking rock concert! Ready to stand up!” — speaking to director Josh Taft.

At that same show, the band performed “Baba O’Riley” for the first time, the Who cover that has remained a fixture in Pearl Jam’s live set ever since.

On June 9, 1989, the Moore hosted Lamefest, a Sub Pop-organized event that brought Nirvana, Tad, and Mudhoney together on the same bill. It was an unusual move for Sub Pop, a label that typically operated out of much smaller clubs — and the event marked a kind of expansion of the scene into new territory.

Other Notable Moments

In 1971, the Moore hosted the world premiere staging of The Who’s rock opera Tommy, produced by Seattle Opera under the direction of Richard Pearlman.

Queensrÿche — the band formed in Bellevue, a city just across Lake Washington from Seattle — recorded two live DVD releases here: Mindcrime at the Moore and Live Evolution.

Hotels near The Moore Theatre Seattle

Staying close to the venue is always a great opportunity to walk to and from the event, and enjoy the exciting atmosphere as musicians and fans gather throughout the day.