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Madrid Theatre

21622 Sherman Way Canoga Park (Los Angeles), CA 91303 | map |

The original building: 

Opened: November 24, 1926 as the Madrid Theatre when the town was known as Owensmouth.



A 1926 newspaper article announcing the project. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating it. 


 
A November 23, 1926 story in the Van Nuys News. Thanks to Ron Pierce for locating it for a post on Cinema Treasures. The Van Nuys Theatre noted in the article was later known as the Fox Van Nuys.

Seating: 600 originally, 570 later. 

It's in the 1928 and 1930 city directories. By the 1939/40 directory it had become the Canoga Theatre.



A 1944 program from the Canoga. The item donated by Jack Corbett appears on the Cal State Northridge Oviatt Library website.



The inside of the program. It's on the Oviatt Library website.



By the mid-60s it was known as the Park Theatre and running adult films. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for finding this July 1976 ad. It later became part of the Pussycat chain, advertised as the Park Pussycat.

Closing: It closed following damage from the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

Status: The City of Los Angeles acquired the property from the Pussycat chain and demolished the building.



A 1984 view of the theatre as the Park Pussycat. Thanks to the now-vanished American Classic Images website for the photo. It also makes an appearance in Chapter 1 of Jay Allen Sanford's epic article "Pussycat Theatres: The Inside Story," originally written for the San Diego Reader. It's on blogspot: Chapter 1 | Chapters 2-15 |


The new theatre: 


Opened: December 12, 1998. It's owned and managed by City's Department of Cultural Affairs as a live performance venue. Thank to Cat Lukaszewski for her 2019 photo. Other photos from her visit can be seen in two posts on the LAHTF Facebook page: set one | set two |

Architects: FSY Architects. Their page on the Madrid Theatre has five photos of the project. They note that the site had serious size restrictions and that they squeezed 11,000 s.f. of audience and support spaces onto a 50' x 140' lot. 

Seating: 338 on the main floor and 92 in the balcony for a total of 430.

Phone: 818-347-9419   Website: culturela.org/madridtheatre


Interior views: 


A look toward the stage. Photo: Cat Lukaszewski - 2019



The rear of the house. Photo: Cat Lukaszewski - 2019


 
Another view to the rear. Note the original color scheme. Photo: FSY Architects - 1998


 
Lighting catwalks. Photo: Cat Lukaszewski - 2019


More exterior views: 


A 1998 view. Photo: FSY Architects



 A marquee detail. Photo: Cat Lukaszewski - 2019



Sidewalk art. Photo: Cat Lukaszewski - 2019. Thanks, Cat! 



Looking east on Sherman Way. Photo: Google Maps - 2019
 
 
 
"CLOSED R RENOVATION." It's a January 2023 Google Maps view looking west toward Owensmouth Ave. 
 
 

Under renovation in mid-2023. Thanks to Dave Hunter for sharing this as well as the two shots below in a June Facebook post.  
 
 

Another look at the facade work. Photo: Dave Hunter - June 25, 2023
 
 

Project data. Photo: Dave Hunter - June 25, 2023

More Information: The L.A. Times discussed the history of the site in their 1998 story "A Change of Scenery in Canoga Park..."

The 2019 Los Angeles Daily News story "Reseda's Madrid Theatre Cultural Arts Hub just got over $400K to be 'a destination for arts and culture'" discussed a round of upgrades the theatre would be getting. Thanks to Donavan S. Moye for spotting the story.

See the page about the location on Cinema Treasures, where they have it listed as the Canoga Theatre. 
 

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