Theater Deville - Vacaville, CA
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member NW_history_buff
N 38° 21.394 W 121° 59.369
10S E 588290 N 4245861
Originally built as the Clark Theater in 1926, it later became the Vacaville Theater. Now it has a new life as a live performance theater known as Theater DeVille.
Waymark Code: WMNFAA
Location: California, United States
Date Posted: 03/04/2015
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member TheBeanTeam
Views: 2

A website, Cinema Treasures, highlights the history of this theater and reads:

The Clark Theatre opened in 1926. By 1941, it had been renamed Vacaville Theatre. It underwent some improvements in 1952, by San Francisco based architect/designer Gale Santocono.

In the early-1960’s, this theatre was part of the West Side-Valley Theatre chain. Closed for many years, a renovation & restoration project began in 2013 and was completed in January 2014 and it became the DeVille Theatre. It was suddenly closed on September 17, 2014. It was reopened November 17, 2014 as a sports and entertainment bar.

*UPDATE* As of January of this year, this theater has changed its venue to a live theater performance establishment. I located a recent article from The Reporter that updates the current status of this vintage theater and reads:

Downtown Vacaville theater revamp right on schedule

Electricians, carpenters and other workers buzzed their drills, pounded their hammers, and snapped their tape measures inside the Theatre DeVille Vacaville, a hive of activity Saturday, just a few weeks before an expected opening later this month.

Don Matthews, director of business affairs for DeVille Enterprises, owners of the refurbished venue at 308 Main St., said some final state permits must be obtained before the doors can swing wide to welcome the public into a space that will hold more than 600 people (maximum capacity, general admission seating) for a variety of entertainment purposes, most of them music concerts.

Meanwhile, a year after remodeling began on the aging single-screen movie house, the Clark, company co-owners and project developers Royce Farris and Jason Johnson have installed a modern, three-sided marquee. Its middle is beige with brown lettering, reading Theatre DeVille Vacaville Established 2014, the two flanking portions are electric signs flashing "Coming Soon" and the theater's name.

The building's three-story exterior boasts a black-and-gray color scheme, and the walls below the marquee, on each side of the street entrance, are black marble.

In an earlier interview, Farris noted that construction workers put in 12-hour days to meet the late-January deadline for a "soft opening" at the theater, which also will a center for comedy, classic movies, community theater, speakers, festivals, special events and corporate rentals, among other things. The multimillion-dollar theater will be open at least five days a week, he added.

The theater's interior will have balcony and side-area seating, with a sizable number of removable seats to open up a dance area, depending on the musical act or venue needs, said Farris, a Vacaville native and graduate of Vacaville High School.

Additionally, the stage will be approximately 28-by-34 feet, not including a green room, or small backstage area, accessible by an elevator, above the stage. He and Johnson plan to install Dolby Digital sound, top-of-the-line LED lighting, two kitchens, a full-service bar and several other portable bars scattered throughout, plus employee restrooms and locker areas, security systems inside and outside the building, and storage areas. The kitchen alone cost nearly $300,000, or about one-seventh of total construction costs, Farris noted, adding that other plans include restoration of the theater's 1920s-era proscenium, the use of carpeted walls, and the incorporation of chandeliers into a state-of-the-art lighting scheme.

The Clark closed nearly 25 years ago, a victim of time and the era of multiplexes.

Year Theater Opened: 1926

Number of Screen(s): 1

Concessions Available: yes

Web site: [Web Link]

Ticket Price (local currency): Not Listed

Matinee Price (local currency): Not Listed

Visit Instructions:
Must take a photo of the theater.
Please try to include yourself or gps in the picture.
Tell of your experience at the theater, if it is still a theater. If it is no longer a theater tell of an experience from the past at the theater, if this can be done.
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