It was designed by renowned theatre architect John Eberson with funding from a group of local investors and opened on September 4, 1922.

The sidewalls of the auditorium were accented by niches with mock tile roofs, grills, and wood lattice arches across the ceiling to create a courtyard effect.

Throughout the 1920s, the Chicago-based Orpheum circuit brought famous names like: Al Jolson, Fannie Brice, Jack Benny, George Burns, Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Gracie Allen, Gypsy Rose Lee, Bing Crosby, Mickey Rooney, and Harry Houdini to Wichita's Orpheum Theatre.

In addition to these live acts, the Orpheum was one of the first theatres to show D.W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation and hosted the Kansas premier of Gone with the Wind in 1940.

[3] With the economic boom brought on by 1940s defense spending, the Orpheum was kept open 24 hours a day to accommodate the many shifts of workers building airplanes for WWII effort.

Various legal entanglements complicated ownership of the office complex adjacent to the theatre, until a US District Judge signed an order dismissing the nonprofit group from the lawsuits.

Nationally renowned performers regularly grace the historic Orpheum theatre stage, recent performers include: Dave Chappelle, "Weird Al" Yankovic, Elvis Costello, Keb' Mo', William Shatner, Lewis Black, Steven Stills, Blue October, Judy Collins, Paula Poundstone, Black Violin, Halestorm, David Blaine, Diana Krall, and David Sedaris, and most recently the cult classic hit tour of Mystery Science Theater 3000 Live!