Los Angeles Theatres: Variety Arts Theatre: other basement areas

Pre-2025 basement views:

An 80s look at the Ed Wynn Bar, located in the northwest corner of the basement. The photo appears in the 28 page "Variety Arts Center Commemorative Edition" that's available as a PDF from the Los Angeles Public Library.

The bar c.2014. The doorway at the exit sign leads to the basement lobby area with elevators and ladies restroom. Photo: The Location Portal

The north wall of the bar. The stairs at the left go up to the outer lobby near the boxoffice. The doors in the center go to the men's restroom. Photo: The Location Portal - c.2014

The bar during renovations. Photo: Cap Equity Locations - July 2019

Another bar view. Photo: Cap Equity Locations - July 2019

The ladies room in the north side of the basement, under the inner lobby. Photo: The Location Portal - c.2014

The sink area. Photo: The Location Portal - c.2014

The sink area during renovations. Photo: Cap Equity Locations - July 2019

Under the auditorium in 2011. The basement was once full of items left over from Milt Larsen's Variety Arts days. Most of that was cleared out during the renovations. It's unknown where it all went. Thanks to Michael Zyda for sharing this photo, one of 67 he took that can be seen in a post on the DTLA Development Facebook page.

Another view of the stored items. Photo: Michael Zyda - 2011

A rack of of changeable neon letters stored in the basement. Photo: Michael Zyda - 2011

Under the auditorium in 2019. In the corridor seen on the right we're looking back toward Figueroa. There's a bit of the stairs visible to get up to the main lobby. Near the stairs are the bar and the restrooms. Photo: Cap Equity Locations

Farther forward toward the stage, looking back toward the lobby end of the basement. The electrical room is at the left. On the right it's the north wall of the building. Photo: Cap Equity Locations - July 2019

The electrical service gear. Photo: Cap Equity Locations - 2014

The basement in 2026:

The lobby at the bottom of the stairs down from the house left end of the inner lobby. The elevators are down the hall and around the corner to the right. The lit doorway on the right is the bar entrance. In the bar's far corner there's another set of stairs going up to the outer lobby, near the boxoffice. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

A look into the bar. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

The elevators and a monitor with Paul McCarthy's 1971 video "Ma Bell." Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

Looking north in the basement lobby on opening night of the Julia Stoschek Foundation's six-week exhibition "What a Wonderful World: An Audiovisual Poem." Straight ahead is the ladies restrooms, turned into a co-ed facility for this exhibition. There's an option before you get to the restrooms to take a right turn and head under the auditorium. Photo: Bill Counter - February 6, 2026

A peek into the bar on opening night of the Julia Stoschek Foundation exhibition. Photo: Bill Counter - February 6, 2026

In the center in the back corner of the bar are stairs on the northwest corner of the building going up to the outer lobby, near the boxoffice. At the right it's a wall added for the exhibition to create an entrance vestibule for a viewing room that had been the men's room. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

Video art collector Julia Stoscheck in what had been the men's restroom with "Mandy’s Piano Solo in Columbine Cafeteria," a piece by Bunny Rogers from 2016. The photo by Carlin Stiehl appeared with Will Fenstermaker's February 3, 2026 L.A. Times story "Closed for decades, a historic L.A. theater reopens for an ambitious late-night video art experience."

A view from the stairs in the northwest corner of the building. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

A look to the bar on a less busy night. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

The stairs going up to the outer lobby behind the boxoffice. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

The sink area in the restroom with Douglas Gordon's 1996 piece "The Making of Monster" on a monitor. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

The toilet area. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

A corridor near the restroom leading from the basement lobby forward to the space under the front of the auditorium. On the screen straight ahead it was Anna Imhof's "Untitled (Wave)" from 2021. Yes, that's a half-naked woman standing there whipping the waves. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

Closer to "Untitled (Wave)." The wall was added for the exhibition. The next shot looks left from this position. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

A look north along the new wall toward the side wall of the building and a monitor showing Alice Guy-Blaché's 1906 film "The Consequences of Feminism." Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

Taking a right at the monitor running Alice Guy-Blaché's film reveals a corridor created along the north wall of the building that ends backstage. The larger space under the auditorium is off to the right. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

The steps up to the dressing rooms under the stage. See the stage + stage basement page for many views of that area. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

Looking in to the big room under the auditorium, formerly an air handling plenum. That's Anna Imhof's "Untitled (Wave)" on the screen at left, on the east wall. Straight ahead on the south wall it's a rack of neon letters from the Variety Arts days and a monitor running Luis Bunuel's "Un Chien Andalou" from 1929. The woman in the chair at the right with her phone out is watching Sigalit Landau's 2000 piece "Barbed Hulu." Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

On the left it's the rack of changeable neon letters. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

The neon letters. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

A closer look. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

Electrode housings on the back of the letters. The cans on the right contain the transformers. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

The front side of the rack, facing the wall. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

A look west with spectators watching "Un Chien Andalou" on the left and Sigalit Landau's 2000 piece "Barbed Hulu" on the wall beyond. To the right it's the corridor back to the lobby. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

A view to the north wall of the space. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

That opening on the left will get you backstage. Head through the red doorway for "Xanadu." Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

Heading south, toward house right, in a corridor downstage of the orchestra pit. Straight ahead it's screen #1 of Robert Boyd's four-screen 71 minute 2006 extravaganza "Xanadu." Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

In the southeast corner, a dirt-floored space watching screen #1 of "Xanadu." Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026

Looking north toward "Xanadu" screens 2, 3 and 4. Note the wood barricade on the right. Beyond that it's a drop down to a space with a much lower floor, originally a room for mechanical equipment. Photo: Bill Counter - February 2026