The Old Globe Theatre: Over 85 Years of Theatrical Excellence

July 6, 2010

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The Old Globe Theatre was built in 1935 for the presentation of abridged versions of Shakespeare’s plays as part of the California Pacific International Exposition. At the conclusion of the exposition in 1937, a non-profit producing corporation, the San Diego Community Theatre, leased the theater and adjacent buildings from the City of San Diego (an arrangement that continues today) and renovated the theater for ongoing use.

On December 2, 1937, the remodeled Old Globe Theatre opened with a production of John Van Druten’s The Distaff Side. A young actor named Craig Noel was in the cast, guiding the theater’s growth as an actor, director, and artistic leader through more than five decades of continuous production, and he continues to serve as Founding Director to this day.

In 1969, the Old Globe Theatre remodeled the original restaurant facility, known as the Falstaff Tavern, to create the 225-seat Cassius Carter Centre Stage, an intimate space devoted to the production of new and experimental theater.

On March 8, 1978, an arson fire destroyed the landmark Old Globe Theatre. Fortunately, the flames spared the administrative offices, rehearsal hall, dressing rooms, scenery and costume shops, and the Cassius Carter Centre Stage. As plans to rebuild the Globe went into action, the immediate need for a space to produce that summer’s San Diego National Shakespeare Festival led to the construction of the Festival Stage, an award-winning outdoor theater.

In January 1981, the theatre’s board of directors established the Globe as a year-round professional company, initiating more than a decade of extraordinary growth. In 1982, the new 581-seat Old Globe Theatre opened with a production of Shakespeare’s As You Like It. After another arson fire destroyed the Festival Stage in 1984, the new 612-seat Lowell Davies Festival Theatre was constructed in 1985. A decade later, a fundraising campaign retired the debt from the two fires and financed a major reconstruction and remodeling project, unveiling an enhanced rehearsal and administrative complex, box office, gift shop, pub, and landscaped plaza.

The Old Globe has been home to the most acclaimed national artists, designers, directors and playwrights in the Theatre industry. Over twenty productions from The Old Globe have appeared on Broadway and off-Broadway, continuing this tradition. The Old Globe’s production of “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” received 11 Tony Award nominations in 2005, and its 2000 production of “The Full Monty” earned 10 Tony Award nominations for its successful Broadway run. Globe Artistic Director Jack O’Brien received the 2003 Tony Award® for his direction of the musical Hairspray and the 2004 Tony Award® for his direction of Henry IV at Lincoln Center. These awards bring world attention not only to The Old Globe but also to San Diego’s rich cultural landscape.

The Old Globe annually produces 15 mainstage productions from all periods and styles, ranging from Shakespeare to an ongoing emphasis on the development and production of new works, and an annual family musical, Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas!. With a current operating budget of approximately $20 million, the Globe is one of San Diego’s largest arts institutions, its leading arts employer, and among the nation’s top-ranked regional theatres. More than 250,000 people annually attend Globe productions and participate in the theater’s education programs and outreach services.