HISTORIC CALIFORNIA THEATRE TO OPEN IN SAN JOSE

Renovation and expansion of the California Theatre in the Heart of San Jose's new Arts District

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, NEW YORK, NY AND MINNEAPOLIS, MN –(September 17, 2004)– Shuttered for over 30 years, San José’s historic California Theatre is set to reopen September 17 as a major performing arts facility, designed both for live stage performances, including opera, and for motion pictures. The $75 million transformation was the result of a six-year joint undertaking of the San Jose Redevelopment Agency and the Packard Humanities Institute, which financed over one-third of the project costs.

Opera San Jose will begin their season September 18 with a production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro. They will present three additional operas (Tosca, Carmen, and The Flying Dutchman) for their first season at the California Theatre, sharing the stage with other performing groups including concerts by Symphony Silicon Valley and screenings of classic films.

Originally designed by the noted architectural firm of Weeks and Day (architects of the Sainte Claire Hotel, Oakland’s Fox Theatre and San Francisco’s Mark Hopkins Hotel), the California Theatre is one of the best preserved examples of late 1920s motion picture houses in the country. Over the years, the theatre housed vaudeville shows and featured 3D and Cinemascope. In the 1960s and 1970s the building went through several owners until it closed in 1973. In 1985, the property was purchased by the San José Redevelopment Agency to preserve San José’s largest remaining downtown movie palace. Studies were undertaken to determine its future use, but implementation did not occur because of budget and technical reasons related to the small existing stagehouse.

In 1998, the Packard Humanities Institute suggested and funded a feasibility study of the theatre to identify options for conversion into a performing arts theatre suitable for the largest productions of Opera San José and other performing groups. ELS Architecture and Urban Design was hired for the study and later for the theatre renovation and expansion, with theatre consultants Auerbach - Pollock - Friedlander, and Auerbach - Glasow, lighting design. Charles M. Salter Associates was retained to provide acoustical consulting services.

The conversion of the theatre into a top tier performance facility required a larger and wider stagehouse to accommodate modern productions. Unfortunately, the tight site and an existing service alley for the neighboring Sainte Claire Hotel, located directly behind the stagehouse, left no room to expand. With the much appreciated cooperation of the Sainte Claire Hotel, the service alley was relocated from Market Street to First Street, and a new and larger stagehouse could be constructed up to the adjacent hotel. This gained 13 feet of valuable stage depth, making it possible to stage opera performances and exchange sets with other regional opera companies.

Restoration of the historic building to its former 1927 elegance was a major goal of the Packard Humanities Institute, the San José Redevelopment Agency, and ELS Architects. The First Street entry façade was returned to its former elegance and includes the re-creation of the original marquee and California vertical sign.

The original consultant for the historic interiors was Tony Heinsbergen (son of A.B. Heinsbergen the original decorative designer of the California Theatre). Unfortunately, Tony Heinsbergen died in February of 2004, before the final phase of decorative painting. James Goodman was subsequently engaged to design and supervise all decorative painting in the historic (but not the modern) areas of the theatre. The decorative painting was done by EverGreene Painting Studios of New York. For many weeks, as many as fifteen skilled decorative painters were working simultaneously on the scaffolding.

Inside the theatre, the transformation is extensive and elegant. The auditorium and three foyers have been painstakingly refurbished with painted finishes taking cues from historic photographs. Custom broadloom carpeting, infill terra cotta tile, marble veneer, and restored historic light fixtures add to the atmosphere.

One of two refurnished Wurlitzer organs is positioned in the entry foyer. The second pipe organ is located in the main auditorium. Both were carefully assembled and installed by Edward Millington Stout III. The organs will be owned and maintained by the Stanford Theatre Foundation.

Within the auditorium, the transformation continues with extensive restored decorative painting and historic light fixtures; theatrical lighting upgrades imbedded in dropped ceiling beams and in Juliet balconies to minimize technical intrusions; and 1,160 new, mohair upholstered seats.

To accommodate the Opera and other live productions, the rear orchestra seating level and balcony were slightly re-raked for better sightlines, while retaining the traditional movie palace ambiance. A sound-dampening roof structure was added to reduce outside noise penetration. Renovation work relied on new structural framing and seismic bracing throughout the project, carefully placed to accommodate restored historic features. The stage rigging and curtains, the orchestra pit elevator, and theatrical lighting and sound systems are new. The projection booth was extensively renovated.

A new Market Street building addition was designed by ELS to provide a second main entrance from the convention center district. Limestone facades were designed to complement the neighboring Sainte Claire Hotel. The building addition provides added program space for the Opera and other performing groups. In addition to the two-story lobby expansion, amenities include basement level dressing rooms and back-of-house support; mezzanine star dressing rooms; and second level public spaces including conference room, green room, and large rehearsal hall, as well as truck loading and back-of-house support. A new First Street building houses expanded restrooms, mechanical and support rooms, and includes a new outdoor courtyard accessible at performance intermissions.

Swinerton Builders was the General Contractor, with Rudolph and Sletten providing construction management services. The facility will be operated by Team San José, also operating other city performance and convention venues.

This beautifully restored and expanded historic theatre is envisioned as the centerpiece of San José’s South First Street Theatre, Arts and Entertainment District.


FACT SHEET

Building size: 85,000 sf historic renovation and new construction
4,000 sf courtyard and second floor terrace

Project Opening: September 17, 2004

Construction Began: July 2001

Project Cost: $75 million

Construction Cost: $58 million

Funded by: The Redevelopment Agency of the City of San Jose and the Packard Humanities Institute, which financed over one-third of the project cost

Owner: Redevelopment Agency of the City of San Jose (acquired in 1985)

Date of original construction: 1927

Original architect: Weeks and Day

Renovation and Expansion Architect: ELS Architecture and Urban Design

Construction Manager: Rudolph & Sletten, General and Engineering Contractors

General Contractor: Swinerton Builders

Structural Engineer: Rutherford & Chekene Consulting Engineers

Mechanical: Guttmann & Blaevoet Consulting Engineers

Electrical/Data/Communications: The Engineering Enterprise Consulting Engineers

Theatre Consultant: Auerbach • Pollock • Friedlander

Lighting Consultant: Auerbach • Glasow

Acoustics: Charles M. Salter Associates

Landscape: Catalyst

Wurlitzer Organ: Edward Millington Stout III

Decorative Painting Supervision: James Goodman

Decorative Painting: EverGreene Painting Studios of New York

Performance Use: Opera San Jose, other performing groups, and for screenings of classic films and Cinequest.

Original Building

  • The original building was designed in 1927 by architects Weeks and Day (architects of the Sainte Claire Hotel, Oakland’s Fox Theatre, and San Francisco’s Mark Hopkins Hotel).
  • Said to be “the finest theater in California” on its opening day, it is one of the best preserved examples of late 1920's motion picture houses in the country.
  • Over the years the theatre housed vaudeville shows and featured 3D and Cinemascope.
  • In the 1960s and 1970s, the building passed through several owners and closed in 1973.
  • In 1985, it was purchased by the Redevelopment Agency to preserve the City’s largest remaining downtown movie palace. For historic information on the California Theatre visit: http://www.preservation.org/foxtheatre/foxtheatre.html

Stagehouse

  • In comparison with other regional opera facilities around the country, the existing stagehouse was not adequately sized for opera performances and it discouraged jointly-produced operas and the exchange of sets with other regional opera companies.
  • The existing service alley for the neighboring Sainte Claire Hotel and Dohrmann Building prevented the expansion of the stagehouse’s depth.
  • In 1998, the Packard Humanities Foundation funded a study by ELS and Auerbach to identify options for conversion into a performing arts facility.
  • The service alley was relocated from Market Street to First Street in collaboration with neighboring building owners.
  • A new stagehouse (13 feet deeper and 20 feet wider and higher) was constructed behind the existing ornamented proscenium and extended to the adjacent hotel.
  • The side of the new stage was raised three feet to allow a ten foot high tunnel underneath the rigging platform to connect the new service alley to the Sainte Claire Hotel.

Seismic Support

  • Carefully placed to accommodate historical features, new structural framing and seismic bracing were required throughout the theatre.
  • The original long and narrow First Street entrance foyer is supported with new beams over the roof and wide-flange columns, on new foundations, that rise along the north side.
  • Structural support for the auditorium occurs on the exterior to save the elaborate interior finishes. A series of H-frames, supporting the east and west auditorium walls, also provide circulation for the auditorium vomitories.

Ornamentation

  • Converting this historic movie palace into a performing venue required construction work throughout the entire building and protection of the original ornamentation.
  • The opulently ornamented historic interiors, with cast plaster ceilings and detail, were refurbished with decorative painting and the elaborately stenciled entry foyer ceiling was restored.

The Auditorium

  • To provide greater structural stability, the balcony and roof needed strengthening.
  • The orchestra pit was enlarged to accommodate up to 56 musicians.
  • The rear orchestra seating level and balcony were slightly re-raked to provide seating for 1,160 with superior sightlines and comfort yet preserving the “movie palace” feeling of the theatre.
  • The rebuilt balcony, maintaining original steel trusses and replacing wood flooring with cast-in-place concrete, creates a lateral diaphragm between the auditorium’s two side walls.
  • A triple layer roof reduces outside noise as the theatre is in the flight path of the San Jose airport. The roof is a sandwich of concrete, insulation and then lightweight concrete, topped by roofing material.
  • Meeting contemporary performance requirements, new catwalks and theatrical lighting positions were imbedded in dropped ceiling beams and in Juliet balconies to minimize technical intrusions.

Expansion

  • A new three story limestone building links the theatre to Market Street and the convention district through a second main entrance that compliments the neighboring historic Sainte Clare Hotel. The building contains rehearsal space, dressing rooms, offices, and a side stage with truck loading.
  • A new two-story addition on First Street, constructed on an adjacent vacant lot, contains restrooms, conference space, and outdoor courtyard. The courtyard will be used by patrons of the theatre before and during performances, and by the public during non-performance hours.

Theatre Vertical Blade Sign and Marquee

  • The original marquee was recreated by studying historic drawings and photographs.
  • The vertical blade sign, featuring a motif of California golden poppies animated with chase lights was reproduced at its original size and detail.

Organs

  • Two Wurlitzer organs were commissioned by the Packard Humanities Institute for the building—a large theatre organ for the auditorium installed behind the historic plaster grillwork and a smaller organ behind the historic arched chambers in the lobby
  • The organs, assembled and installed by Edward Millington Stout III, will be owned and maintained by the Stanford Theatre Foundation.