Our History
Laurel Little Theatre and its home, the historic Arabian Theatre.
For more than sixty years, Laurel Little Theatre has called the Arabian Theatre home — but the story of this downtown landmark stretches back a full century, to a grand hotel, a coffee shop, and a single-screen movie house.
- 1920s
The Pinehurst Hotel
Downtown Laurel's Pinehurst Hotel was a hub of city life, home to several businesses — including the Hotel Pinehurst Coffee Shop.
A 1927 addition expanded the hotel with extra rooms and, built right behind them, the Arabian Theatre. A secret side entrance let hotel guests slip straight from inside the Pinehurst into the theatre.
- 1961
A theatre company is born
A small group of Laurel theatre lovers gathered in the Hotel Pinehurst Coffee Shop and founded the Laurel Little Theatre — in the very building that would one day become its permanent home.
For its first fifteen years, LLT staged its shows at local schools and then the Armory Building.
- 1977
LLT buys the Arabian
When the Arabian closed its doors as a movie theatre, Laurel Little Theatre bought the building. The company removed the old movie seats and built out a stage, transforming the former cinema into its own Playhouse.
The Arabian has been LLT's home ever since, at 408 North 5th Avenue, directly across from City Hall.
- 1988
The Pinehurst comes down
The Pinehurst Hotel was demolished in 1988, but the Arabian Theatre — tucked behind it since 1927 — survived and carried on as LLT's stage.
- Today
The next chapter
LLT continues to preserve and improve the Arabian, with plans for a new Pinehurst Room addition built where the old hotel once stood — recreating, among other touches, the secret side entrance that once joined the hotel and the theatre.
After more than six decades and over 240 productions, the Arabian remains the heart of community theatre in Laurel.
Stories from Our History
Longer reads collected by LLT historian Wess Hughes — the company's founding, the building's full story, and the original 1927 newspaper coverage.
- Our Story
Laurel Little Theatre Celebrates 60+ Years!
Four theatre lovers founded LLT in 1961 — and the road from school stages and the old Armory to a permanent home in the Arabian.
- The Building
Laurel's Grand Arabian Theatre Survives and Thrives
From Laurel's first 'moving picture show' in 1907 to a 900-seat palace of Oriental splendor — the century-long story of the Arabian Theatre.
- 2009
Bringing Back the Grand Old Lady: The 2008–09 Renovation
Nine months, mostly volunteer labor, and a hidden 1927 surprise behind the walls — how the Arabian was restored and its neon brought back to life.
- 1927
The Arabian Opens: The 1927 Newspaper Archive
Transcribed from the Laurel Daily Leader's special tabloid section the day before the Arabian opened on April 1, 1927 — the program, the prices, the 'Wonder Organ,' and the men who built it.
Photo Galleries
Photos of the Arabian and old Laurel — its renovations, the 1988 Pinehurst demolition, attic finds, and more. Many of these images also appear in the history film below.
Recognition
Smithsonian Top 20 Small Towns to Visit
Smithsonian Magazine named Laurel one of the nation's twenty best small towns to visit — with a shout-out to LLT (and to Tennessee Williams' Blanche DuBois).
Read the Smithsonian feature ↗Mississippi Magazine — Best of Mississippi
Mississippi Magazine's annual "Best of Mississippi" list named LLT one of the top five performing theatres in the state.
See the Best of Mississippi list ↗On Film
Filmmakers Wess Hughes and Laura Cooley produced a short documentary on the history of all of Laurel's old movie theatres dating back to 1907 — including the Arabian.
Watch the short film on YouTube ↗Got old photos or stories?
We're always looking for more old pictures of the Arabian Theatre, the Pinehurst Hotel, or any of the 240-plus shows LLT has produced over the decades. If you have photos to share, we'll gladly borrow them just long enough to make a copy and return the originals. Have a great story to tell? Send it our way.
lltarabian@gmail.com