Historic Pipe Organ to Return to Hoyt Sherman Place After a Century

Hoyt Sherman Place has been silent for over a century. In its dreams, it heard a voice calling and speaking its name. Dare it trust the music of the night? Because the Phantom of the Opera is here.

Well, the pipe organ meant to play musicals like "The Phantom of the Opera" will soon be here in Des Moines. This historic instrument, once destined to be part of the theater's original design in the 1920s, has finally found its way back to the stage after more than a hundred years.

The original designers of Hoyt Sherman Place at 1501 Woodland Ave. had plans to install an organ when the building was first constructed. However, due to financial constraints from World War I or because silent movies were going out of style, the chambers meant to house the organ's 100-some pipes were instead used as storage space.

Theater-style pipe organs were powerful instruments capable of replicating at least 42 different instruments, eliminating the need for an orchestra. For about 10 years, finding a 1920s organ like that has been on Hoyt Sherman CEO Robert Warren's wish list.

"It would be magical, especially because the theater itself is an acoustic perfection, to be able to hear that sound roll through the room," Warren said.

As luck would have it, executors from Las Vegas-based Maloof Foundation agreed with Warren. And they happened to have a fully restored 1922 organ at the ready. After hearing the story of the Hoyt Sherman theater waiting for over 100 years for its missing piece, Warren said the executors "absolutely fell in love" with the theater's history and knew that it would be the organ's new home.

"That was a perfect fit. It was like a destiny thing," Warren said.

To his knowledge, Hoyt Sherman's new instrument is now the only organ of its kind in the Des Moines metro area.

New Hoyt Sherman Place organ once used by Liberace

The organ coming to Des Moines originated from the United Artists Theater in downtown Chicago. When the theater was demolished, the Maloof brothers salvaged and purchased the organ and took it to Las Vegas, where it was used in the Palms Casino as part of its orchestration, Warren said.

Musicians used the organ for can-can shows to grand Vegas showgirl performances. Musical sensation Liberace also played on this organ, Warren said.

Later on, Phil Maloof took the organ to use for his own private entertainment on the 59th floor of the casino in his penthouse.

Warren said the organ coming to Des Moines is going full circle for the instrument's history. He's excited that it will have an opportunity to shine again.

Warren and the Des Moines Women's Club are brainstorming visions of what shows they'll put on: perhaps Tchaikovsky’s "Nutcracker Suite," or a live accompaniment for "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," or perhaps large-scale memorial services and holiday open houses.

While the Maloof Foundation is donating the fully restored organ for free, it will cost Hoyt Sherman around $250,000 to install the hundreds of pipes and other equipment needed for the organ.

Brooke Benschoter gave a lead gift of $50,000 in honor of her grandmother, who played the organ for St. Patrick’s church in Danbury, Iowa (now named Saint Mary's Catholic Church) as a teenage until her death. The theater is now accepting donations to help fund the installation. The equipment will go up when the theater raises enough money.

"The first time that it comes to life in there, it's just going to be an 'aha!' moment for everybody," Warren said.