State Theater

The Pasadena Playhouse began life as a small community theater in 1916. The Pasadena Playhouse Association raised money to build a larger theater which was completed in a Spanish Revival style in 1924. The theater soon became an accredited school for theater arts, training over 30,000 students over the past century. Many famous actors, such as Victor Mature, Charles Bronson, Leonard Nimoy, Dustin Hoffman, and Sally Struthers received training at what would become known as the “Star Factory.”

The theater was made the official State Theater of California in 1937 and later became the first TV station on the West Coast. Closed in 1969, the Pasadena Theater would reopen in 1986. The Pasadena Playhouse, as the theater is known today, is a California Historical Landmark (887).

(Added by Statutes, Resolution Chapter 45, 1937)

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