Fans of San Francisco's Beloved Castro Theater Balk at Proposed Changes

KQED's Forum

KQED

News Commentary, News, Politics

4.2 • 727 Ratings

🗓️ 29 August 2022

⏱️ 57 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Big changes are planned for San Francisco’s beloved Castro Theater, which celebrated its 100th birthday this year. Live music promoter Another Planet Entertainment, which now manages the storied venue, wants to restore and renovate it. That includes replacing the orchestra style seats with removable ones allowing for standing room concerts. But more than five thousand fans of the theater have signed a petition opposing the renovation. We’ll talk about the future of the Castro Theater and we want to hear from you. Share one of your favorite memories from the Castro Theater. Guests: Gabe Meline, senior editor, KQED Arts & Culture. Peter Pastreich, executive director, Castro Theatre Conservancy - a nonprofit committed to the preservation of the Castro Theatre, and to the preservation of the kind of programming that has served its community and San Francisco for the last 100 years. Gregg Perloff, CEO, Another Planet Entretainment Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Support for Forum comes from Rancho La Puerta, a wellness resort in Baja, California, just an hour from San Diego.
0:07.6	Three, four, and seven-night summer packages include fitness classes, hiking, live music, mindfulness, and culinary adventures, featuring fruits and veggies straight off the vine.
0:18.9	Special rates and offers are available for summer stays and first-time guests.
0:23.8	Saver summer at Rancho LaPuerta, rancho LaPuerta.com.
0:28.3	Support for Forum comes from Broadway SF, presenting Parade, the musical revival based on a true story.
0:35.7	From three-time Tony-winning composer Jason Robert Brown comes the story of
0:40.0	Leo and Lucille Frank, a newlywed Jewish couple struggling to make a life in Georgia. When Leo is
0:46.9	accused of an unspeakable crime, it propels them into an unimaginable test of faith, humanity, justice,
0:55.1	and devotion.
1:03.5	The riveting and gloriously hopeful parade plays the Orpheum Theater for three weeks only, May 20th through June 8th.
1:07.8	Tickets on sale now at Broadway, sF.com.
1:10.5	From KQED. From KQED. From KQED. San Francisco's beloved Castro Theater celebrated its 100th birthday
1:30.2	this year, but huge single-screen movie theaters like it have not fared well in recent decades. Very few of
1:36.7	them have survived, regardless of what they might have meant to their communities. And so it might seem like
1:42.8	good news that another planet entertainment, which now manages
1:45.8	the storied venue, wants to restore and renovate it.
1:49.8	But there's a catch.
1:50.8	They want to replace the orchestra-style seats with removable ones that allow for standing-room
1:55.7	concerts.
1:56.7	Thousands have signed a petition protesting the seating change, arguing it will end the Castro as it has been for a century.
2:03.9	What will happen to the theater? We'll discuss with the key players after this news.
2:11.6	Welcome to Forum. I'm Alexis Madrigal.
	...

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