Santa Monica College is looking for people with deep pockets to help sponsor programming at The Stage, its new $45 million theater that is expected to become the premier performing arts venue on the Westside.
Whatever the name, the 499-seat venue still under construction in Mid-City should become a familiar one among the performing arts sect, and is being pitched as an ideal marketing opportunity.
“This is a chance for people to put their fingerprint on this new venue that we just outed last week. It’s an incredible opportunity,” said Dale Franzen, the opera singer-turned-artistic director of The Stage and it’s little brother, The Second Space, a smaller, black box theater that will allow young artists to collaborate with seasoned veterans of the arts.
Inspired by the intimacy of Italy’s horseshoe opera houses, but with the architectural grandeur of the Walt Disney Concert Hall, developers see The Stage as transcending the traditional performing arts venues. In addition to presenting renowned and respected artists, the long-term vision for The Stage is to serve as a place where performing artists can nurture new work and collaborate in all performance disciplines.
It will also be a place where audiences of all ages and backgrounds are welcomed into a more intimate arts experience, Franzen said.
Franzen would not disclose how much money someone or some company would have to give in order to place their name on the building, but did say Google could make a good fit.
“We want a company or an individual who really cares about cultural arts and education,” Franzen said. “This is going to be a landmark, a jewel for California.”
While there is a need for a main sponsor, Franzen said there are other opportunities to contribute. They could include sponsoring the lobby, certain chairs, bathrooms, even a parking lot.
“This is a chance for people to put their fingerprint on this new venue that we just outed last week. It’s an incredible opportunity.”
Dale Franzen, artistic director of The Stage and The Second Space
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 24, 2007. Read the original PDF.