Mr. Small's Funhouse

Looking back from the stage toward the choir loft-cum-balcony Flickr user porcupiny (Creative Commons)

Exterior of Mr. Small's Funhouse Flickr user JosephA (Creative Commons)

Sleigh Bells performing at Mr. Small's Funhouse Flickr user RJ Schmidt (Creative Commons)

Chandelier in the Rectory House littlebrumble (Atlas Obscura User) (Used with permission)

Panorama view of Millvale from one of Mr. Smalls' rooftop terraces littlebrumble (Atlas Obscura User) (Used with permission)

chasepopt (Atlas Obscura User)

Anti-Flag at Mr. Smalls dcooper

Small bar and coffeeshop on the lower level! blimpcaptain (Atlas Obscura User)

From the altar of what once was an 18th-century Catholic church, performers now get different types of congregations jumping and dancing. Nationally-recognized acts spanning all genres of music from indie to hip hop, rock to electronica make pilgrimages to Mr. Small’s Funhouse, located a stone’s throw from downtown Pittsburgh.

In addition to a 650-person capacity music theater in the church’s nave and chancel—complete with spectrally-lit stained glass windows and a looming choir loft repurposed as a balcony—the building also houses a maze of outdoor terraces and an assortment of smaller, DJ club rooms. No part of the extensive grounds went unused: in the so-called Rectory House, the former quarters of the church’s clergy forum became a backstage area reserved for touring bands and crew; the large, underground cellar of the building became a draft beer bunker serving food and brews to concertgoers as well as the general public, until late into the night.

There is even a skate park. Hallelujah.

Across the street, Mr. Small’s owners have bought a second abandoned church, with plans of transforming it into a recording studio, café, and musical instruments store.