The Ensemble Theatre

Cabrillo St. at La Playa St. | map |

Opening: This legit house opened January 31, 1970 in the building that had been the Dark Mystery attraction at Playland at the Beach. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for sharing this pre-opening photo taken by Tom Gray that's in his collection. He comments: 

"The Ensemble Theatre's mailing address was 4715 Cabrillo, but the facade of the building faced La Playa. Architecturally, not much more than a big box with stadium style seating." 
 

A January 1970 ad. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating it.

Closing: The date is unknown.

Status: It's been demolished. The site is now part of the parking lot for a Safeway store.  
 
 

A vintage view of the building as Dark Mystery. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating it. He notes:
 
"There's an abundance of data on Playland, so photos of the building as Dark Mystery are not hard to find. The challenge is, of course, to find a GOOD one."
 

The building after Dark Mystery had closed. It's another photo that Jack located.

More information: For more about Playland at the Beach see the "Whitney's Playland-At-The-Beach" page on the site PDXHistory.com, Jim Smith's "San Francisco's Playland at the Beach - The Early Years" and "Playland at the Beach - The Golden Years." 
 
There's a "Playland at the Beach" page on the Western Neighborhoods site, Wikipedia has a Playland page and there's also "Playland at the Beach - Relive the Memories" and "Playland Not At The Beach."
 
Also nearby was the Friends and Relations Theatre at 660 Great Highway, using a building that had been constructed as a ballroom around 1884. 
 
Jack Tillmany's Arcadia Publishing book "Theatres of San Francisco" can be previewed on Google Books. It's available from Amazon or your local bookseller.  

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