Los Angeles Theatres: Belasco Theatre: backstage

The Belasco's auditorium as seen from onstage in a 1926 Mott Studios photo. Note the illuminated sidewall arches. In the church era they were cut open to become functioning windows. The photo is one of 17 shots in the California State Library set # 001415683.

Proscenium: 42' wide x 38' high

Stage wall to wall: 65'

Footlights to curtain line: 3 1/2' feet in 1949. The theatre now has neither.

Curtain line to back wall: 28'

Traps: None. The greenroom is directly below the stage and has always had a finished plaster ceiling.

Dressing rooms: The original layout included two at stage level, three one floor up and four in the basement.

Orchestra pit: Covered with concrete. The Times noted in 1926 that the pit was on a hydraulic lift but this has not been confirmed by another source. It seems unlikely.

Grid height: 67'

Rigging: Originally it was a hemp house. There are flyfloors both stage left and stage right with stage right being the main one. In 1949 they were rigged for 35 sets.

Asbestos: It's been removed. It was operated stage left. The upper part of the lattice track for the arbor is still on the proscenium wall.

Paintbridge: Up close to the backwall at flyfloor height. The bridge itself remains in place the paint frame is long gone.

Power: In 1949 it was noted that they had AC only. Many downtown theatres also had DC service, perhaps into the 50s.

Dimmers: The original board was off right. We get a look at it in the 2001 film "Swordfish." It was evidently removed in the 2010-2011 renovations.

Some of the tech data comes from the 1949 ATPAM Theatre, Arena & Auditorium Guide. Thanks to Bob Foreman for posting the book on his Vintage Theatre Catalogs site.

A 2002 view offstage left. Note the paint bridge. Thanks to Bob Meza for his photo appearing on the Cinema Tour page about the Belasco.

Another stage left view. Photo: Bob Meza - Cinema Tour - 2002

A peek off to stage right. Photo: Bob Meza - Cinema Tour - 2002. Thanks, Bob!

A balcony view of the empty stage. Thanks to Dave Bullock for this 2007 view. Check out his terrific set of nineteen photos appearing on the Belasco Theatre page of his site eecue.com.

Want to know where the loading doors are? Thanks to Eric Lynxwiler we have this 2008 shot with them open. It's on Flickr. Start at Eric's first Belasco Theatre photo and you can page through 12 of the theatre. His Los Angeles Theatres set has over 500 great photos of many Los Angeles movie palaces and legit theatres.

A 2008 stage left view showing some of the seismic bracing and the remains of the lattice track for the asbestos curtain's arbor. It's an Eric Lynxwiler photo on Flickr. Thanks, Eric!

A view down showing the effects of the 2011 renovations. Thanks to Mike Hume for his photo. It was taken during the visit to the theatre as part of the Theatre Historical Society Conclave in the summer of 2017. Visit Mike's Historic Theatre Photography site for hundreds of fine photos of the theatres he's explored. And don't miss his page about the Belasco.

A look up to the grid. Photo: Mike Hume - 2017

The stage right end of the grid as seen from the stage right VIP box. Note the diagonal seismic bracing in the upper center of the photo at the stagehouse backwall. The cables coming down diagonally from this area are to support the paint bridge. The bridge itself is seen on the lower right. Photo: Mike Hume - 2020

The headbeam area off right. The hemp headblocks are still in place. Photo: Bill Counter - 2022

The view across to stage right. The little balconies onstage had been installed by some previous tenant but they only got the fancy railings and faux-decorative plasterwork added during the 2011 renovations. Photo: Bill Counter - 2017

A wider look across to the stage right flyfloor. Photo: Bill Counter - 2017

Another look to the stage right flyfloor. Photo: Bill Counter - 2022

Off right, formerly the dimmerboard location. The door goes to the exit passage between this theatre and the Mayan. Photo: Bill Counter - 2022

Working on the 1st electric. It's on chain motors -- there's no counterweight system. Above, note the diagonal bracing between the sidewall and the proscenium. Photo: Bill Counter - 2017

Looking offstage left. With the auditorium floor leveled and brought up to stage height, they had to build a new platform to serve as a stage. The ornate panel for the face of the VIP box was created from castings of auditorium plasterwork. Photo: Bill Counter - 2017

In the stage left VIP box. The flyfloor level can be seen in the upper left. It's a 2020 photo by Mike Hume that appeared on the Archiving Technical Theatre History Facebook page.

Another from the VIP box. Thanks to Wendell Benedetti for his 2020 photo on Facebook.

The grid as seen from the stage left VIP box. Photo: Mike Hume - 2020

At flyfloor level:

Upstage right. On the right we're looking along the double pinrail. The large tubular thing is an HVAC duct. At the left it's a view along the paint bridge. Photo: Mike Hume - 2020

The downstage end of the stage right flyfloor. Note the abandoned arbors for three wire guide counterweight sets. Photo: Mike Hume - 2020

Looking along the paint bridge toward stage left. Photo: Mike Hume - 2020

In the basement:

A 1926 Mott Studios look at one of the Belasco's dressing rooms. It's one of 16 photos of the theatre in the California State Library set # 001415656.

A 1926 Mott Studios look at the green room. There will be no trapping here. We're right underneath the stage. The doors at the right go to dressing rooms. The photo is one of 17 shots in the California State Library set # 001415683. The set includes two other takes of this view. This was one of four photos of the theatre in the August 1927 issue of Architectural Record. A version of it is also in the Los Angeles Public Library collection.

The condition of the green room in 2008. Thanks to Eric Lynxwiler for his photo on Flickr.

A ceiling detail. Photo: Eric Lynxwiler - Flickr - 2008

A closer look at one of the faux wood beams. Photo: Eric Lynxwiler - Flickr - 2008

A detail of the restored green room ceiling. Thanks to Albert Domasin for his photo on Flickr. Check out all 44 views taken at a 2011 LAHTF tour in his Belasco Theatre set.

A closer look at the faces on the beams. Thanks to Steve Shriver for his 2011 photo on Flickr. It's included in his fine 75 photo "Belasco Theater and downtown walkabout" album.

Another green room view. How nice, they painted it green. Photo: Bill Counter - 2017

The upstage wall as seen from the bottom of the stage left stairs. The trap room was remodeled in 2022 by Live Nation. In 1926 this area behind the columns was built out as separate dressing rooms. Photo: Bill Counter - 2023

Part of the 2022 project involved building out the downstage side of the space into separate dressing rooms. We're looking toward stage right. Photo: Bill Counter - 2022

One of the new dressing rooms. Photo: Bill Counter - 2022

Another of the dressing rooms. Note that the walls only go part way up, with the 1926 vintage ceiling preserved. Photo: Bill Counter - 2023

A ceiling detail. Photo: Bill Counter - 2022

At the stage right end of the trap room, a doorway through the proscenium wall into the former plenum space under the auditorium. It's now a separate events space Live Nation is calling "The Chamber." Photo: Bill Counter - 2023

A look under the now-covered orchestra pit. Whatever downstage wall the pit once had got removed to make the area part of the club space in the plenum. See the support areas page for more views. Photo: Bill Counter - 2023

Looking to trap room level from the stage right stairs. Photo: Bill Counter - 2023

The view up to stage level. Photo: Bill Counter - 2023

Los Angeles Theatres

Belasco Theatre: backstage

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