Each night in Mesa, Arizona, the largest theater pipe organ ever created rises above the audience on an 8,000-pound rotating hydraulic elevator to sit 10 feet above the 700-seat dining room. The organ has 1,074 keys, buttons, and switches linked to a series of xylophones, glockenspiels, gongs, and cymbals to create the sound of a full orchestra. Nightly shows also include dancing marionette cats, disco balls, and spectacular light shows.
While diners sup below, four industrial blowers pump pressurized air through the 6,000 pipes of the 1927 Wurlitzer organ, which is insured for $5 million. The performance hall restaurant serves 300,000 visitors each year, while the organ plays classics like “The Flight of the Bumblebee,” “The Hills Are Alive” from “The Sound of Music,” “The Circle of Life” from “The Lion King,” the “Star Wars” theme, and “God Bless America.”
