List of theatres in San Francisco explained

This is a list of theatres and live performance venues in San Francisco, California.^{[1] [2]} For more information on theater in San Francisco, see Culture of San Francisco - Theater.

Theatres in San Francisco

!Name!Address!Neighborhood!Seats!Notes

Alcazar Theatre	650 Geary Street	Tenderloin	511
Bayfront Theatre	Fort Mason Center			home of BATS Improv
Bayview Opera House	4705 Third Street	Bayview	300	^[3]
Beverly Hills Playhouse of San Francisco	414 Mason Street	Union Square		theater and acting school
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium	99 Grove Street	Civic Center	7000
Bimbo's 365 Club	1025 Columbus Ave.	North Beach		music venue
Bindlestiff Studio	185 6th Street	South of Market	80	Filipino American performing arts center^[4]
Bottom of the Hill	1233 17th Street	Potrero Hill		music venue^[5]
Brava Theatre Center	2781 24th Street	Mission District	360	dedicated to the expression of women, people of color, youth, LGBTQ and others^[6]
Brick and Mortar Music Hall	1710 Mission Street	Mission District		music venue^[7]
Cartwright Hotel on Union Square	Pacific Heights Room, 524 Sutter Street	Union Square	80
Castro Theatre	429 Castro Street	Castro District	1400	primarily a movie house, but also used for live special events^[8] ^[9]
Chancellor Hotel Theatre	433 Powell Street	Union Square		hosts the San Francisco Magic Parlor
The Chapel	777 Valencia Street	Mission District		music venue^[10]
Club Fugazi	678 Green Street	North Beach	400	formerly hosted Beach Blanket Babylon^[11] ^[12]
Cobb's Comedy Club	915 Columbus Ave.	North Beach		^[13]
CounterPulse	80 Turk Street	Tenderloin		previously at 1310 Mission Street^[14] ^[15]
Cowell Theatre	Fort Mason Center		437	venue for the New Pickle Circus^[16]
Creativity Theater	Children's Creativity Museum, 221 4th Street	South of Market	200	formerly Zeum Theater, located in Yerba Buena Gardens
Custom Made Theatre	414 Mason Street	Union Square	99	intimate setting for modern plays and musicals, previously at 533 Sutter Street
Curran Theatre	445 Geary Street	Tenderloin
Dance Mission Theater	3316-24th Street	Mission District
Diego Rivera Theatre	City College of San Francisco, 50 Frida Kahlo Way	Sunnyside		home of the mural Pan American Unity by Diego Rivera^[17]
Feinstein's at the Nikko	222 Mason Street	Union Square		music venue and nighclub
Fillmore Auditorium	1805 Geary Blvd.	Fillmore District	1,315	music venue with standing room
Gateway Theatre	215 Jackson Street	Embarcadero		venue for the 42nd Street Moon, and frequent venue for Theatre Rhinoceros;^[18] formerly the Eureka Theatre
Geary Theater	415 Geary Street	Tenderloin		venue for the American Conservatory Theater
Golden Gate Theatre	1 Taylor Street	Tenderloin		built in 1922, and once housed vaudeville acts; owned by SHN
Gough Street Playhouse	1620 Gough Street	Cathedral Hill	50	venue for the Custom Made Theatre Co.^[19]
Grace Cathedral	1100 California Street	Nob Hill		hosts concerts and events
Grand Theatre	Gray Area Foundation for the Arts, 2665 Mission Street	Mission District		former movie theater, now used for live performances
Great American Music Hall	859 O'Farrell Street	Little Saigon
Great Star Theater	636 Jackson Street	Chinatown		music and event venue; previously 55 Taylor Street, and 923 Market Street
Herbst Theatre	San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center, 401 Van Ness	Civic Center
The Independent	628 Divisadero Street			music venue in the Harding Theater building
Intersection for the Arts	1446 Market Street	Civic Center		established in 1965, the oldest alternative non-profit art space in the city
Lorraine Hansberry Theatre	762 Fulton Street	Western Addition		African-American theatre
Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall	San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center, 201 Van Ness Street	Civic Center		venue of the San Francisco Symphony
Joe Goode Annex	Project Artaud, 401 Alabama Street	Mission District		^[20]
Marines Memorial Theater	609 Sutter Street	Lower Nob Hill
Marrakech Magic Theatre	419 O'Farrell Street	Tenderloin		featuring the magic of Peter Morrison
The Marsh	1062 Valencia Street	Mission District		specializes in developing new performances
Theatre at MCCLA	Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts	Mission District	150	^[21]
New Conservatory Theatre Center	25 Van Ness Ave.	Civic Center
NOHSpace	Project Artaud, 2840 Mariposa Street	Mission District		venue of Theatre of Yugen^[22] ^[23]
SF Masonic Auditorium	1111 California Street	Nob Hill	3,481	formerly known as Grand Masonic Auditorium and Nob Hill Masonic Auditorium
Nourse Theater	275 Hayes Street	Civic Center	1,693	venue of City Arts and Lectures^[24]
Oasis	298 11th Street	South of Market		drag theater and cabaret^[25]
ODC Theater	351 Shotwell Street	Mission District		dance performances
Orpheum Theatre	1192 Market Street	Tenderloin	2,197	built in 1926 and owned by SHN
Palace of Fine Arts Theatre	Palace of Fine Arts, 3301 Lyon Street	Marina District		originally constructed for the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition, has since been rebuilt, renovated and seismically retrofitted^[26]
Peña Pachamama	1630 Powell Street	North Beach		Bolivian restaurant and Latin dance shows
Phoenix Theatre	414 Mason Street	Union Square		two stages: the 6th Floor Theatre, and The Annex^[27]
Presidio Theatre	99 Moraga Avenue	Presidio		^[28]
Punch Line	444 Battery Street	Financial District		comedy club
Regency Center	1290 Sutter Street	Lower Nob Hill	1,423	music venue with four stages; the main stage is the Regency Ballroom
Safehouse Arts	145 Eddy Street	Tenderloin		formerly known as SAFEhouseARTS^[29]
San Francisco Conservatory of Music	50 Oak Street	Civic Center		includes three performance halls (Concert Hall, Recital Hall, and Osher Salon)
San Francisco Jazz Center	201 Franklin Street	Hayes Valley
San Francisco Playhouse	450 Post Street	Union Square	199	traveling theater company that performs political musicals^[30]
South of Market Cultural Center	934 Brannan Street	South of Market		managed by SOMArts^[31]
Strand Theater	American Conservatory Theater, 1127 Market Street	Civic Center		^[32]
Theatre du Lycée Français de San Francisco (TLF)	Lycee Francais de San Francisco, 1201 Ortega Street	Sunset District	325	^[33]
Venetian Room	Fairmont San Francisco	Nob Hill		venue for cabaret performances,^[34] and where Tony Bennett first sang, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco"^[35]
Victoria Theatre	2961-16th Street	Mission District		plays, live concerts, film festivals, musicals, and other kinds of events
	Presidio Main Post	Presidio
The Warfield	982 Market Street	Civic Center		large music venue
War Memorial Opera House	San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center, 301 Van Ness Street	Civic Center		venue of the San Francisco Opera and San Francisco Ballet
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts	701 Mission Street			includes the Novelius/YBCA Theatre or Blue Shield of California Theater
	Project Artaud, 450 Florida Stree	Mission District		home of the theatre company of the same name, with a main stage, and the smaller Z Below theater^[36]

Former theatres

• Amado's (c. 2015–2023), formerly known as Viracocha (2010–2015), 998 Valencia Street in the Mission District; Viracocha was an underground music venue, and Amado's was later a licensed venue^{[37] [38]}
• Balancoire, 2565 Mission Street; restaurant, bar, club with live performances in the Mission District^[39]
• Center for Sex & Culture, 1349 Mission Street; hosted live theater and other events in South of Market^[40]
• The Dark Room Theatre (2008–2015), 2263 Mission Street^[41]
• El Capitan Theatre and Hotel, 2353 Mission Street; Mission District^[42]
• EXIT Theatre, 156 Eddy Street^[43]
• Grand Opera House (San Francisco)
• The Hypnodrome (?–2017), 575 10th Street; once home of The Thrillpeddlers company^[44]
• Imperial Palace restaurant, 818 Washington Street; formerly hosted Tony n' Tina's Wedding in Chinatown^[45]
• Inner Mission theater and event space at 2050 Bryant Street in the Mission, home of Theater MadCap^[46]
• Kelly Cullen Community Auditorium, 220 Golden Gate Avenue; hosts productions by Theater of Others^[47]
• Market Street Cinema (1912–2013), 1077 Market Street^{[48] [49]}
• Metro Theatre (1924–2006), 2055 Union Street^[50]
• Mojo Theatre, in the Redstone Building at 2940 16th Street, in the Mission District^[51]
• Northpoint Theatre (1967–1997), 2290 Powell Street in North Beach^{[52] [53] [54] [55]}
• New Musical Theater of San Francisco, Inc., a non-profit that produced original musicals^[56]
• PianoFight, 144 Taylor Street^[57]
• Royce Gallery, 2901 Mariposa Street; historic warehouse performance venue in the Mission District^[58]
• Ruby Skye, 420 Mason Street; nightclub and special events venue, formerly the Stage Door Theatre^[59]
• Stage Werx Theatre, 446 Valencia Street, Mission District theatre hosts live performances, comedy, solo performance, music, and movies^{[60] [61]}
• Supperclub, 657 Harrison Street, South of Market^[62]
• Teatro ZinZanni, cirque, comedy, and cabaret theater; without a venue, but seeking to return to the San Francisco waterfront^[63]
• Theatre 39 at Pier 39, Beach Street at Embarcadero^[64]
• Tides Theatre, 533 Sutter Street, 2nd floor; 99-seat theater in Union Square^[65]
• Un-Scripted Theater Company, 533 Sutter Street, 2nd floor; 49-seat improv theater in Union Square^[66]
• Variety Preview Room (or The Preview Room), Hobart Building at 582 Market Street
• Yoshi's San Francisco, jazz club at 1330 Fillmore Street^[67]

See also

• Theatre Bay Area
• Theater District (San Francisco, California)
• San Francisco Mime Troupe, traveling theater company that performs political musicals

External links

• Web site: San Francisco, California . CinemaTour . Vision Entertainment Services.
• Web site: Theatres By Address and Neighborhood . San Francisco Theatres.
• Web site: Pre-1906 Theatre List, alphabetical . San Francisco Theatres.
• Web site: Theatres: alphabetical list . San Francisco Theatres.
• Web site: San Francisco Movie Theaters . Cinema Treasures.

Notes and References

1. Web site: SF Gate Events. 5 April 2013 . The San Francisco Chronicle.
2. Web site: Theatre Bay Area Event Listings. 3 January 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20141221023636/http://tba.baystages.com/. 21 December 2014. dead.
3. Book: Brooks, Jack . Front row center: a guide to northern California theatres . October 1981 . 101 Productions . 978-0-89286-193-4 . 96 . registration.
4. Web site: Ramos . Alex . June 15, 2022 . S.F.’s Bindlestiff Studio explores Filipino American identity through food . 2024-03-08 . . en-US.
5. News: Jessie Schiewe . March 15, 2017 . Bottom of the Hill. Gigging alone at the Bottom of the Hill . San Francisco Weekly.
6. Web site: Parks . Shoshi . 2017-06-29 . Brava! For Women in the Arts . 2024-03-08 . Time Out San Francisco . en-US.
7. News: Williams . Kale . August 19, 2013 . Brick & Mortar Music Hall sounds off . 2024-03-08 . . en.
8. News: Vaziri . Aidin . Castro Theatre to go dark for at least a year. Here’s the last day to watch a show . 2024-03-08 . The San Francisco Chronicle.
9. Web site: 2024-02-03 . A look inside SF's historic Castro Theatre before $15M 'face-lift' slated to take 1.5 years . 2024-03-08 . ABC7 San Francisco . en.
10. Web site: Pehling . Dave . 2022-09-03 . Beloved San Francisco venue the Chapel marks 10 anniversary with special shows . 2024-03-08 . CBS San Francisco . en-US.
11. News: Janiak . Lily . 2019-12-23 . SF treasure ‘Beach Blanket Babylon’ to close after 45 years . . San Francisco, CA.
12. News: Earle . Anitra . June 19, 1974 . First published June 19, 1974 . First 'Beach Blanket Babylon' review . . San Francisco.
13. Book: Nina . G. . Bay Area Stand-Up Comedy: A Humorous History . Patterson . O. J. . 14 February 2022 . Arcadia . 978-1-4396-7446-8.
14. Web site: McCarthy . Allison . 2013-11-22 . CounterPULSE Gets a New Home . https://web.archive.org/web/20210606135451/https://www.7x7.com/counterpulse-gets-a-new-home-1786590833.html . 2021-06-06 . 7x7 Bay Area . en . Next December, CounterPULSE's lease at 1310 Mission Street will expire, leaving the 22-year-old experimental performing arts venue without a home. The worst case, and most likely scenario, subjects them to eviction or a dramatic (and unaffordable) rent increase—CP is located around the corner from the new Twitterplex, so one can only imagine how landlords would jack the cost. Fortunately, thanks to a progressive, charitable act, they will move into the landmark historical building at 80 Turk (that full-of-TL-flavor block between Taylor and Mason). The building dates back to 1922 and has gone through many incarnations over the decades, first as a gambling hall, then as the Buccaneer Tavern in the 1930s, the Gayety Theater (shown in B&W here) in the 1960s, and then the Dollhouse Theater porn palace until the early 90s when it fell into disrepair (and was likely used for illegal raves, as evidenced by international DJ tags on the basement walls)..
15. http://counterpulse.org/programs/coproductions/ Counterpulse
16. Web site: December 10, 1996 . San Francisco Gets A Peck Of Pickles . Playbill.
17. Web site: 2023-06-21 . New theatre building will house famous Diego Rivera mural in San Francisco . 2024-03-08 . The Art Newspaper.
18. Web site: The Gateway Theatre .
19. http://www.goldstar.com/venues/san-francisco-ca/gough-street-playhouse Gough Street Playhouse
20. http://joegoode.org/joe-goode-annex/ Joe Goode Annex
21. http://www.missionculturalcenter.org/MCCLA_New/rentals.html Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts
22. News: Eisenhart . Mary . December 12, 2012 . 'A Minor Cycle' at NOHspace . 2024-03-08 . . en.
23. Web site: Janiak . Lily . December 11, 2022 . New company brings ancient aesthetics, modern twist in Kunoichi Productions’ ‘Never Mind’ . 2024-03-08 . . en-US.
24. Web site: Sam Whiting . 2013 . Nourse Auditorium Reborn As Theater . 3 January 2015 . San Francisco Chronicle.
25. Web site: 2023-05-18 . San Francisco names Oasis owner D'Arcy Drollinger as 1st Drag Laureate . 2024-03-08 . ABC7 San Francisco . en.
26. http://www.palaceoffinearts.org/Welcome.html Palace of Fine Arts
27. http://www.phoenixtheatresf.org/ Phoenix Theatre
28. Web site: Home . presidiotheatre.org.
29. http://safehousearts.org/ SAFEhouseARTS
30. https://www.sfplayhouse.org/sfph/ San Francisco Playhouse
31. http://www.somarts.org/about/mission-history/ South of Market Cultural Center
32. http://www.act-sf.org/home/about/the_strand.html Strand Theatre
33. Web site: Home . theatrelfsf.com.
34. http://www.bayareacabaret.org/ Bay Area Cabaret
35. Web site: 2011 . The Fairmont Hotel Celebrates the 50th Anniversary of Tony Bennett's First Performance of "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" . 3 January 2015.
36. Web site: Parks . Shoshi . 2017-07-05 . Z Space . 2024-03-08 . Time Out San Francisco . en-US.
37. Web site: Gebel . Meira . 2015-08-03 . Quirky Viracocha Appears to Have Closed Its Doors . 2024-03-08 . . en-US.
38. Web site: Hom . Annika . 2023-11-30 . Amado’s, Valencia bar and music venue, closes after 8 years . 2024-03-08 . . en-US.
39. Web site: 2019-03-29 . Neighborhood Notes: Goodbye Mission Street Sports Bar, hello Arena SF . 2024-03-08 . . en-US.
40. News: Vainshtein . Annie . 29 January 2019 . SF kink community grieves loss of Center for Sex and Culture . SFGate.
41. Web site: Dark Room Theater in San Francisco . 2024-03-08 . Cinema Treasures.
42. Book: Tillmany, Jack . Theatres of San Francisco . 2005 . . 978-0-7385-3020-8 . 79 . en.
43. Web site: Janiak . Lily . October 20, 2022 . Say farewell to Exit Theatre’s Eddy Street venue with ‘Adventures in Place’ . 2024-03-08 . . en-US.
44. Web site: Clement . Olivia . January 10, 2017 . San Francisco Thrillpeddlers Say Farewell to Longtime Home . Playbill.
45. http://www.playbill.com/events/event_detail/tony-n-tinas-wedding-at-imperial-palace-44324 Imperial Palace
46. http://www.innermissionevents.com/ Inner Mission
47. http://sanfrancisco.eventful.com/venues/kelly-cullen-community-auditorium-/V0-001-008927622-7 Kelly Cullen Community Auditorium
48. Web site: Let's Break Down the History of the Market Street Cinema . Curbed SF.
49. Web site: Barmann . Jay . June 6, 2013 . What Will Become of the Historic, Quite Possibly Haunted, Market Street Cinema? . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20151101163451/http://sfist.com/2013/06/10/what_will_become_of_the_historic_qu.php . 2015-11-01 . SFist.
50. Book: Tillmany, Jack . Theatres of San Francisco . 2005 . Arcadia Publishing . 978-0-7385-3020-8 . 97 . en.
51. Web site: Hurwitt . Sam . 2019-06-27 . ‘Above Ground’ spotlights the kind of new theater under threat in SF . 2024-03-08 . . en-US.
52. Web site: Northpoint Theatre in San Francisco, CA . . 21 October 2022.
53. News: Stein . Ruthe . Northpoint Theater To Close on July 31 . 21 October 2022 . . 11 July 1997.
54. News: San Francisco fell in love with 'Star Wars' weeks early 45 years ago . 21 October 2022 . . . 4 May 2022 . en.
55. Web site: Like a Dream: EMPIRE at the Northpoint . Star Wars at the Movies . 21 October 2022.
56. Web site: About Our Company . 1 April 2013 . Not Quite Opera.
57. Web site: Janiak . Lily . January 24, 2023 . PianoFight to shutter S.F. and Oakland venues in latest blow to Bay Area theater . 2024-03-08 . . en-US.
58. News: Eisenhart . Mary . November 25, 2010 . 'Match' at Royce Gallery . 2024-03-08 . SFGATE.
59. News: Rubenstein . Steve . March 16, 2017 . SF’s Ruby Skye club to close and reopen anew — with bowling . 2024-03-08 . . en.
60. Web site: Stage Werx Theatre . 5 April 2013.
61. Web site: Lu . Xueer . 2023-09-22 . Stage Werx closing, but space will remain a theater . 2024-03-08 . . en-US.
62. Web site: Fort . Ellen . 2015-01-14 . After 10 Years, SOMA's Supperclub Gets Kicked Out of Bed . 2024-03-08 . Eater SF . en.
63. News: Harmanci . Reyhan . 2011-07-01 . Forced Move May Mean the End of Teatro ZinZanni . 2024-03-08 . . en-US . 0362-4331.
64. Web site: Theatre 39 at Pier 39 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20150107132741/https://www.theatermania.com/san-francisco/theaters/theatre-39-at-pier-39_5633/ . January 7, 2015 . TheaterMania.com.
65. News: January 22, 2012 . 'Waiting for Godot' at Tides Theatre . 2024-03-08 . . en.
66. News: Hurwitt . Sam . Improv making up for lost time . 2024-03-08 . SFGATE.
67. Web site: Meline . Gabe . 2015-01-13 . The Addition, Formerly Yoshi's in San Francisco, to Abruptly Close . 2024-03-08 . KQED . en.