|
![]() |
The former Nokia theatre opened in late 2007, on the southwest edge of
downtown L.A., right next to the Staples
Center and the L.A. Convention Center. As of 2015, the Nokia
Theatre, at L.A. Live, had officially changed its name to the Microsoft Theater. But in July of 2023 , the name changed again, this time to the Peacock Theater, named after the NBCUniversal streaming service . Since the Staples Center is itself a prime venue for large concerts, one might ask why they wanted to build a smaller theatre right next door. But that smaller size was the key. While the huge Staples Center, with its 20,000 seats, is fine for giant arena shows, the 250,000-square-foot theatre (with only 7,100 seats) offers a far more intimate concert experience. And a more upscale one, with posh seats, great acoustics, lots of leg room, and perfect sightlines. No baseball stadium-style nosebleed seats here... Although the 180-foot-wide Microsoft stage is the largest in L.A. (and flanked by gigantic LED screens), the farthest seat in the house is just 220 feet away from the stage. Of course, you can expect to pay more for tickets as well... Orchestra seats for the opening night Eagles concert sold for $265. At first, it might seem odd that someone would invest $120 million to build yet another theatre in the already crowded L.A. market. The L.A./O.C. region already had a large number of venues for live concerts & shows, besides Staples, we already had the Gibson Amphitheatre, the Honda Center, the Greek Theatre, the Cerritos Center, the Orange County Performing Arts Center , the Shrine Auditorium, the Forum, the Grove of Anaheim and the still new Kodak Theatre - not to mention the Pantages, the Hollywood Bowl and the Music Center. So why build another theatre? The answer is that a lot of people are sold on the coming renaissance of downtown Los Angeles. After decades of languishing as a virtual ghost town on weekends and nights (when the workers go home), riddled with homeless panhandlers from the nearby Skid Row, downtown L.A. is finally starting to make a serious comeback. Disney Hall and the new Cathedral helped renew interest in downtown. And now the old brownstones and warehouses are being transformed into trendy lofts, as downtown becomes more residential. New restaurants are opening, new office towers being built... To a lot of people, it looks like downtown is about to catch fire. There have been so may false starts in the past that a "Cry Wolf" reaction is normal, but this time the long-heralded downtown rebirth may well be the real thing. (See
the artists rendition of L.A. Live below.) The Microsoft Theatre is just one part of this huge, 27-acre project, that includes restaurants, nightclubs, an ESPN studio/broadcast center, the Grammy museum, movie theatres, and a 54-floor tower housing both posh Ritz-Carlton condos and a J.W. Marriott hotel (plus the largest ballroom in Southern California). The Conga Room will also move to the new center. All of which seems certain to benefit the adjacent Los Angeles Convention Center.
To see a list of upcoming shows at the Microsoft Theater, click here.
For more information
on this subject, you can access their official website at:
www.microsofttheater.com
Looking for something in particular? Search the Seeing-Stars website! |
|
Click Here to Return to the Main Menu
Copyright © 1999-2022-Gary Wayne
All Rights Reserved
This webpage is not associated with any business
described in the article above, and does not constitute an
endorsement of this or any other business. The photos of celebrities on
this page also do not constitute
endorsements by them of any kind, and are used by the author solely to
illustrate this online article.
(Click here to read
other disclaimers)