DTLA Broadway Project
The Theatre Experience
During the early 1900s when people lined up for theatre shows and films on Broadway in Downtown Los Angeles, people enjoyed watching the film as well as experiencing the ambience of the theatres. People were able to escape from their daily lives into a unique world and experience the wonders of the shows, films, and theatres. Each of these theatres created difference experiences through their unique choices in ornamentation and styles of design. The ambience created was important to make the audience feel like the were in their own special world for the duration of the film and shows.
Los Angeles Theatre
The Los Angeles theatre is one of the most well known theatres on Broadway. As of now, the theatre still stands and opens occasionally for special events. The interior auditorium is very wide in space, creating a large space filled with detailed ornamentation all around. At first glance, the auditorium feels grand and luxurious but also theatrical. Throughout the room, there are many small intricate details that seem to be composed of organic shapes that are repeated in different patterns. Majority of the forms within this auditorium and the general composition of the room have soft and rounded organic shapes. This creates a less harsh environment that feels more attuned with nature than man-made structures. As mentioned previously, the auditorium also emits a luxurious ambiance. The weave-patterned curtain and the miniscule details on the proscenium, creates a sense of luxury. Furthermore, the sheer amount of detail also creates a sense of grandeur and richness that many people will never be able to see in their day to day life. This feeling of sitting in a luxurious place allows the audience to experience something they would never be able to experience. Many elements within the auditorium give a european styled ambiance. For example, the ceiling has an interesting repeated design that resembles a vintage photo frame or a vintage frame of a mirror. In addition, there are several mural paintings throughout this room that are painted in a European style and subject matter. The theatre also emits a theatrical quality from the comical masks that are above the boxes. These masks may be used to symbolize film and acting or to remind the viewers that they are also there to watch a show. The overwhelming amount of detail throughout the auditorium is difficult to digest and understand. Perhaps the goal of this design is to allow people to immerse themselves into another world where they can discover new things constantly. The details and designs distract the audience from thinking about their daily lives. Instead, they are transported into a different world that provides new and exotic experiences.
Million Dollar Theatre
The Million Dollar theatre is known to have a luxurious Versailles-like style to the architecture and ornamentation. The ornamentation of this auditorium alternates between minimal and detailed sections. This effectively uses the principle of contrast with the alternating placements of extreme detail and minimal detail. This gives the audience a sense of visual relief when looking throughout the auditorium’s details. This will allow the audience to feel less overwhelmed so they can more easily appreciate the different intricate details throughout the room. The empty spaces help emphasize the church-like details on the right and left walls. Furthermore, the contrast between the light toned walls and the dark toned detailing to the right and left of the auditorium room draws the audience’s attention. Using contrasting tones and colors will bring out different sections of the theatre to focus. Moreover, the entirety of the room still feels consistent due to the use of different brown tones. On the church-like detailing on the right and left sides of the room, the design is very detailed yet not overwhelming because the design gives large patches of space, the grills, for visual relief. The design of this seems to be quite organic yet rigid and solid because of the material and the stone like color. Another point of detail is the intricate floral mandala patterning on the ceiling. The detailing within the ceiling piece seems to resemble flowers or nature in a colorful and abstract way. This ceiling piece seems to have pops of colors here and there, then a larger burst of color in the center. The transitioning of colors draws the viewer’s attention from the outside to the center of the design. The contrast between the different styles such as the roman pillars, the intricate church-like design, the bull skulls at the edge of the balcony, the mandala patterned ceiling, and the tragedy triumphant figure creates an exotic experience of many styles and places the audience in an imaginative space.
Palace Theatre
The Palace theatre has an interesting design that blends organic forms with rigid separations. There are many floral and organic details throughout this auditorium. In the small sections where there are intricate detailing, the architect placed floral ornamentation to decorate the theatre. At the top of the boxes, there are large shell-like shapes with small intricate detailing on the edges. The exaggeration of these shells give the room a fastasical atmosphere where anything can happen. Furthermore, the wall trims are also slightly decorated with small floral patterning and different sections of extreme detail are done. The small details seem to be quite minimal and spaced out, there are large sections of blank space. Each of the spaces and shapes on the walls are clearly by the wall trims, the rigid lines, and the surrounding empty space. Although these shapes are clearly defined, the shapes bend with the architecture of the building, giving the design a fluid yet rigid feeling. The design of this auditorium feels as if the architect attempted to blend organic and natural shapes with man-made fixed shapes. By blending these two aspects together, the theatre creates a comfortable feeling that balances between nature and human structures. In the postcard image of the theatre, the colors may not necessarily reflect the real colors during the 1900s. However, the architect seems to have used pink and turquoise to bring a sense of excitement to the space. Whereas the use of yellow and gold colors give a rich and luxurious feeling along with the floral detailing. Overall, this theatre has a playful, fantastical, luxurious, and natural atmosphere where the audience can feel comfort and excitement.
Roxie Theatre
Unlike many of the theatres analyzed in this list, the Roxie theatre is much more rigid and simple than the rest. The overall shape of this auditorium is rectangular with clear outlining of different sections of the wall. The ornamentation on the trimming and walls were very geometric and rigid with the exception of several floral-like patterns. The overall design of the theatre was simple and minimal, allowing the audience to solely focus on the show. In the more recent colored images of this theatre, we are able to see a little bit of the decaying colors. Although the walls were stripped of its designs and patterns, we can see the warm toned wood that makes the front half of the auditorium. Overall, this theatre does not give any exotic or other worldly experiences to the audience. Instead, the simplistic design of the theatre seems like this theatre was made for the sole purpose of watching the show.
Tower Theatre
As of now, the Tower theatre is known as the up and coming Apple store in Downtown Los Angeles. The Tower theatre was a highly decorated space with large amounts of fancy and intricate details. There is little to no blank space in the ornamentation details, creating an overwhelming luxurious feeling. This theatre uses a variety of repeating patterns and forms, most noticeably on the ceiling and the proscenium. These patterns are able to fill up blank space with intricate detailing. Throughout the entire theatre, the architect seems to have used many floral elements in the design. The patterning on top of the proscenium has a flower-like pattern, creating an interesting and organic design. The railings on the sides of the auditorium seem to have very intricate floral detailing as well. Similarly to the Los Angeles Theatre, the ornamentation and design of the place seems to submerge the audience into a world of nature and luxury. There are also large murals that have a European style and subject matter which also pushes the luxurious ambiance as well. Overall, this theatre also removes the audience from their own world into another world where they can experience a blend of nature and luxury.
Conclusion Analysis
Throughout the theatres analyzed, they all have very different types of designs that create different moods and experiences within each theatre. They each seem to use a combination of different styles, giving the audience an experience of many exotic styles. By combining these exotic styles together, the architects are able to create a new and unique experience. In all the theatres, with the exception of the Roxie theatre, the unconventional ornamentation brings the audience to another world. They detach the audience from their daily lives and status for the duration of the film or show. People are able to forget their stress and worries during those moments and the theatre becomes a place where people of all types are able to create unique memories.