Built in 1915, the Hippodrome is the oldest standing Vaudeville theater in America today. The acoustics of the building allowed the audience to listen to the acts without microphones or speakers. The floorboard was also built to resonate vibrations after the curtain fell. The Vaudeville theater began to ebb in the late 1920s and in 1949 became the Wabash Theater for motion pictures. In 1955, the Scottish Rite acquired the theater and opened its cathedral and museum in 1957.