The Victoria, one of the oldest continually operated theaters on the continent, was opened to the public as the Turner Opera House on New Year's Day, 1866.

[4] The theater's presence in Dayton even inspired the publishing of a musical march by Edward Spoth named after the opera house.

This included performances by Al Jolson, The Marx Brothers, Helen Hayes, Fannie Brice, George M. Cohan, Lynn Fontayne, Gertrude Lawrence, Alfred Lunt, Harry Houdini, and many others.

By the late 1960s, Dayton's changing business patterns Downtown and the proliferation of freeways and suburban shopping malls threatened the Victory Theater's existence, and in 1975 it was slated for demolition, in favor of a proposed parking lot.

A public outcry for the theater's preservation that year helped to earn the building its listing in the National Register of Historic Places and, thus, it escaped demolition.

It was said that, during Vaudeville times, the tunnels allowed circus animals to be unloaded from railroad cars blocks away from the theatre, and held underground until showtime.

A mainstay through the period was its screening of "Midnight Movies", offered by a local independent producer, on Friday and Saturday nights that drew a, largely, teen audience for films with counter-cultural themes.

Crews from the Stagehands Union (IATSE) local restored much of the theatre's ancient hemp-and-sandbag fly galley, replacing several hundred thousand feet of rope—along with miles of electrical wiring.

In 1978, the theatre was greatly benefited by the donation of a cache of equipment and stage draperies from National Cash Register's (NCR) auditorium, which had been slated for demolition.

It involved razing the interior commercial space within the forward, Main Street-facing section of the building as well as the stage house, while carefully preserving and restoring the 1866–71 facade and the 1919 auditorium.

Dayton Live presents over 300 performances for all ages each year, including touring Broadway, stand-up comedy, concerts, films, and family shows, as well as educational programs.

[9] With new branding just weeks before COVID-19 shut down venues nationwide, Dayton Live managed to keep operations afloat while laying off hundreds of personnel.

In 2021 while awaiting the Small Business Administration Shuttered Venue Operator Grant, Sutton says on April 26, 2021, Dayton Live was finally able to submit its application, nearly four months after the legislation was passed.