Mirror Lake Lyceum

because I wanted everything to be perfect and worry-free the day-of. I cannot say enough about Brian and his staff. He always answered emails, even if they weren't pertaining to his venue. He let us set up the day before the wedding and was there helping us set tables and put out decorations. He orchestrated the rehearsal and had every detail down pat. I literally had to worry about nothing the day-of. It ran so smoothly and I am so grateful that we choose to have our wedding at this location. Cortney, the bar manager was fabulous too and was willing to work with us to make everything fit our budget. It was a beautiful and classic wedding and a perfect evening, thanks to Brian and the Lyceum staff! Definitely check them out!

ve with the beauty and elegance of the main hall and the HUGE dance floor. We also loved that when you rent the Lyceum, you have the entire venue to yourself. It is very private and you aren't sharing bathrooms with other guests as you would at hotels or larger venues. We decorated with flowers and candles. That is all you need as it already has such a beautiful appearance. Having the bar set up on the dance floor really creates a fun atmosphere during the reception. The dance floor is so big, our 220 guests had plenty of room to dance and we had a band that took up part of the floor too. Brian and his staff are so professional and think of every detail. They flip the room in what seems like a matter of minutes. Brian will work with you on any questions or requests. I didn't get ready at the Lyceum and Brian suggested I could come in a side entrance into the Bridal Room without anyone seeing me. We were very impressed with the service from Lundy's as well. You have to use them for your bar and they were extremely professional and work all the Lyceum events so they know what works best for the venue. The Lyceum is in a great location for out of town guests. The guests can stay at any of the downtown hotels and be in walking distance of great restaurants/museums. We rented the St. Pete Trolley to shuttle guests back and forth. Overall, it is a wonderful venue and location with a great staff to back it. You will not have to deal with a different "coordinator" as you would typically have to deal with a hotel. Brian will be there every step of the way. He also has wedding albums you can look at to see different color schemes/different floor layouts, etc. I highly recommend!

g as well as the reception. Brian was more than willing to meet with us as many times as we wanted and answered all of our questions, even the ones we asked a hundred times! He is more then willing to help in any aspect of the wedding. I highly recommend the Lyceum as the wedding and reception site. The photos and atmosphere came out wonderful.

s about Brian Wilder. He was very prompt with email returns, even on the weekend. Easy to work with and extremely knowledgeable about the wedding industry.

The Lyceum fit all of these qualifications and more. The Grand Hall felt like a church for those who want a church wedding, but also kept its charm as an event space, theatre, and reception hall. It fits everyone's needs. The Lyceum has a wonderful dance floor, stage, and downstairs area for cocktail receptions. The acoustics were wonderful. We had an a cappella quartet who sang and their voices alone filled the hall with no amplification while the music provided by a DJ was equally as balanced. Because of its classic style there were many spots to take pictures including a balcony with old wooden seats. The staff were attentive and informative. They have the system down, but make you feel your individual day is special to them, and not just a wedding factory. They offered many suggestions and knew how to make our wedding look nice with our personal flare. They also have free parking to boot.

g exciting with endless photo opps. Little to no decorating is needed. Brian was truly amazing with his patience and assistance in helping us plan event timeline and coordination amongst vendors. We can't express how thankful we are for his attention to detail and thorough planning. Its location puts it right by the downtown attractions & activities, making it a fun weekend for your guests. Wedding day was perfect! If you are looking for a weather-proof, intimate, historic, beautiful venue that all your guests will be sure to remember, the Mirror Lake Lyceum is for you!

We couldn't have asked for more.

re our day and ESPECIALLY on our day! My expectations were totally exceeded! We got many complients on how beautiful the Lyceum is and how everything was set up. A few of the benefits of the Lyceum are: 1) you get the entire place to yourself for your ceremony, cocktail hour and reception, no sharing with other groups or weddings, 2) the dance floor is off to the side which makes it nice for those who want to socialize without yelling over the music, 3) the acoustics make it easy to hear the ceremony without having to mic everyone - we didn't even need to mic the piano, 4) the Lyceum is so beautiful on it's own that you don't need a lot of decorations. I was a very nervous bride and was second guessing myself about everything, but in the end this was the perfect place and it was everything I wanted our day to be and more. Things were just seemless and beautiful!

e calls. I must admit sometimes I called 2 or 3 times to confirm the same details but he was more than willing to help in any possible. On our wedding day our guests raved about how helpful the staff at the Lyceum was and how they had never been to a more beautiful wedding. We can thank the Lyceum and their staff for assisting in our perfect day.

eat place for a wedding!!

y event going on at the time. No running into another bride on my day! Brian was nothing but helpful throughout the whole process, and was always great about answering questions. On the day of his staff was wonderful, doing whatever necessary, making my guests happy. Our only fly in the ointment was a surprise bill for the chair covers othe day before the wedding. The charge for the covers was mentioned at the time we booked, but when we met one month before we were told that all payments were complete. Not actually the case.

the same location, which in my opinion is the way to go). Most of my guests did not even realize that they were in the same room for the reception that they were for the ceremony as they magically made the room look beautiful and reception ready after the ceremony (and the ceremony is spectacular and has a “church” look as it was a church in the 1920’s). The layout of the room is perfect and there is plenty of space for larger wedding parties. My wedding was about 175 people and we could have fit at least 50-75 more comfortably. Brian (Manager) is fantastic and will help you with ideas and suggestions to make your day perfect as well as make your special day run smoothly. I cannot say enough about the Lyceum and their staff. To some the price may seem a little steep but I really found it to be well worth the money for the beauty and elegance of the facility and the help and guidance from the staff. Michelle – 10/15/2011

ic, and Brian and his crew were amazing! We loved how unique the place was and the fact that it was totally private! That was the main reason we chose it!

ting the beauty of the ceremony site. Most places that can do everything at one location shove you into a small hall or an outside location for the ceremony, but we wanted a focus on the ceremony AND reception. After all, the whole reason for the party is two becoming one! Another great thing of value is that you will in no way see another wedding on your special day - it's all about you! When you choose a hotel you can be sure this is not the case (I was a space coordinator at a hotel and saw this quite often). We received so many compliments and our guests couldn't believe how beautiful the venue was and how stress free our event was. Brian Wilder, the man in charge of the Lyceum, is the most amazing person to work with. Without him and his staff I can assure you our wedding would not have gone as smooth as it did. There was not one thing that went wrong and I did not have to worry about one thing and could truly enjoy our day. Throughout the wedding planning process he was extremely helpful and responded to my emails promptly. I opted to not have a wedding planner and go about this mostly by myself and I was getting nervous being the bride at how things were going to transpire on the day of the wedding since I was actually in the wedding. Brian really came through and was the day of coordinator as well as the rehearsal. We had a large wedding party (7 ea) and he sat us all down and ran through everything with us until we understood it (him and I went over how we wanted things earlier that week). My Uncle (a wedding photographer and has been in many weddings) noted to us that he has never seen a rehearsal so organized. I have also been a bridesmaid four times prior to our wedding and can say the same. Him and his staff made sure everything went well up to the very end when they lined everyone up and passed out the sparklers and lit them before we walked out. They also made sure I got everything back and clean (champagne glasses, cake cutter and server etc.) and set up everything I asked them to. My husband was a little nervous about the fact that the floors are slanted (it was originally a church) but they have tables that adjust to it for the reception and you cannot notice it. He was still a little wary after we booked it until we attended my friends wedding this summer at this location and he didn't even notice they were slanted. All in all, this venue is worth every penny. We had a perfect day thanks to Brian and his staff!!

ng is architecturally amazing, and the manager, Brian Wilder is priceless. He was truly the star of my day. He ran the rehearsal and coordinated the activities the day of our wedding so that everything went smoothly. My only con with this venue is that you have to use a licensed and insured caterer in addition to only being able to rent chair covers and sashes through the Lyceum and use the Lyceum's vendor for bar services. This kind of eliminates your bargaining power with regard to these services, and the 10% fee charged to your caterer, essentially gets passed right back on to you, the customer. Other than that, this place and Brian are an absolute god send. If I had it to do over, I would certainly choose them again!

ers of the Lyceum staff) made for a perfect evening. I continue to get complements from my wedding guests about how beautiful the grand hall was and how lovely the cocktail hour was down in the "Jazz lounge." Because cocktail hour, reception, and ceremony were all onsite and indoors, the Lyceum could be considered for any time of year! Brian also has a helpful list of vendors that he is accustomed to working with--we picked up many of our other vendors from his list. Truly, this is a gem tucked away in St. Petersburg!

s do not do it justice at all!! From the moment you walked in I was in shock of how amazing it was. The huge cathedral makes for a beautiful ceremony. The staff and the service were also a plus!!!

truly special!

s. It is a 1920's building that has been restored beautifully and gives you an old-world feel that is impossible to find in the newer venues. On top of the beauty, Brian, the gentleman who owns and runs the place was a godsend for us. We met with him several times prior to the wedding and he answered all of our questions easily and was on top of every detail. On the day of, it was him who kept our day running flawlessly. He was simply amazing. I have had several of our guests tell us that not only was ours one of the most beautiful weddings they had attended, but also one of the smoothest and most organized. I would highly recommend this venue for anyone getting married in the St. Petersburg area.

e architecture and detail is amazing! It was beautiful!

o feel defeated, we walked into the Lyceum and got "that feeling". I can tell you that WITHOUT A DOUBT, it is worth every penny and then some. The place alone sells itself, but the co-owner, Brian, is priceless. He is truly one of the calmest, most organized, and professional people you will ever meet. Unlike the hotel/resort wedding planners, Brian owns the property so he takes pride in it and knows every inch of the place like the back of his hand. He was incredibly helpful during the planning process. We had our wedding there on 10/10/10. After the ceremony Brian and his staff escorted our guests downstairs to the Orpheum, which is a speak-easy style lounge for cocktail hour. During that time Brian and his staff transformed the ceremony space into our grand reception. Everything was flawless. The pictures on the website do not do this place justice. It is gorgeous! Because it is so ornate you don't need a lot of decorations. If you are looking for an elegant venue with class and sophistication and you’d like for you and your guests to be treated like royalty, then you absolutely must check out the Mirror Lake Lyceum. You will NOT be disappointed!

rned, it is an outstanding historic building in the heart of downtown St. Pete. So if you want to escape a traditional beach wedding, go to the lyceum, I would recommend it to everyone!