Arlington Theater
Encyclopedia
The Arlington Theater is the largest movie theater and principal performing arts
venue in Santa Barbara, California
, USA. In addition to regular screenings and artists, it is home to many events associated with the annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival
.
and Spanish Colonial Revival styles in a period when Santa Barbara was being rebuilt in that style following a devastating earthquake. The exterior takes the form of an immense church oddly lacking in windows (there are a few in the upper stories) and notable mostly for a Mission Revival steeple that ends in a dramatic art deco finial. The effect is of a space ship about to launch from the steeple of an immense Spanish colonial church placed on a church into which the architect forgot to insert windows.
The red tiled building features a covered courtyard with fountain and a free-standing ticket booth
.
It is the interior that is most remarkable. The ceilings of the lobbies are heavily beamed and painted. The auditorium itself seats 2,000 on the main floor and balcony. It is built to give the theatergoer the impression that he is sitting outside in the plaza of a colonial Spanish town, each wall features houses, staircases, and balconies, not painted on but built out from the walls. The proscenium
, in the original theater, was formed by what appeared to be a large stone arc, through which could be seen a river and hills (these were painted on the curtain.) Today, this effect is gone, and the proscenium is topped by the equipment necessary for lighting stage shows. The original ceiling remains to give patrons the impression that they are sitting outdoors under the stars.
One of the Arlington's signature treasures is a famous Robert Morton theatre
pipe organ
hidden from view, that rises on a platform into view when played before a performance.
The Arlington Theatre was designed in the Spanish Colonial Revival style by the Santa Barbara architectural firm of Edwards and Plunkett.
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
venue in Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
, USA. In addition to regular screenings and artists, it is home to many events associated with the annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival
Santa Barbara International Film Festival
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival is a film festival and non-profit organization, established in 1985, that showcases independent American and international films. The SBIFF line-up includes 20 world premieres and 11 U.S. premieres, with newly expanded 11-day festival...
.
History
Located at 1317 State Street, the Arlington was built in 1931 on the former site of the Arlington Hotel, which was destroyed following the 1925 earthquake. The current structure was erected in 1930 as a showcase movie house for Fox West Coast Theaters. It was restored and expanded in the mid-1970s by Metropolitan Theaters Corporation. It opened in its current incarnation in 1976.Architecture
The Arlington was designed in the Mission RevivalMission Revival Style architecture
The Mission Revival Style was an architectural movement that began in the late 19th century for a colonial style's revivalism and reinterpretation, which drew inspiration from the late 18th and early 19th century Spanish missions in California....
and Spanish Colonial Revival styles in a period when Santa Barbara was being rebuilt in that style following a devastating earthquake. The exterior takes the form of an immense church oddly lacking in windows (there are a few in the upper stories) and notable mostly for a Mission Revival steeple that ends in a dramatic art deco finial. The effect is of a space ship about to launch from the steeple of an immense Spanish colonial church placed on a church into which the architect forgot to insert windows.
The red tiled building features a covered courtyard with fountain and a free-standing ticket booth
Box office
A box office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through an unblocked hole through a wall or window, or at a wicket....
.
It is the interior that is most remarkable. The ceilings of the lobbies are heavily beamed and painted. The auditorium itself seats 2,000 on the main floor and balcony. It is built to give the theatergoer the impression that he is sitting outside in the plaza of a colonial Spanish town, each wall features houses, staircases, and balconies, not painted on but built out from the walls. The proscenium
Proscenium
A proscenium theatre is a theatre space whose primary feature is a large frame or arch , which is located at or near the front of the stage...
, in the original theater, was formed by what appeared to be a large stone arc, through which could be seen a river and hills (these were painted on the curtain.) Today, this effect is gone, and the proscenium is topped by the equipment necessary for lighting stage shows. The original ceiling remains to give patrons the impression that they are sitting outdoors under the stars.
One of the Arlington's signature treasures is a famous Robert Morton theatre
Robert Morton Organ Company
The Robert Morton Organ Company was a producer of theater pipe organs and church organs, located in Van Nuys, California. Robert Morton was the number two volume producer of theatre organs, building approximately half as many organs as the industry leader Wurlitzer...
pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
hidden from view, that rises on a platform into view when played before a performance.
The Arlington Theatre was designed in the Spanish Colonial Revival style by the Santa Barbara architectural firm of Edwards and Plunkett.
External links
- The Arlington Theatre - Venue Official Website
- Arlington Theatre Ticketmaster Venue
- Santa Barbara Film Festival - Main page features photo illustration of the Arlington marquee.