415 Geary St. |
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Also see: Geary / Toni Rembe Theatre - interior views
Opening: January 10, 1910 as the Columbia Theatre under the ownership of Jake Gottlob and Melville Marx. It's been the home of American Conservatory Theatre (ACT) since the 60s. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for sharing his 2016 photo.
Website: www.act-sf.org
This was a replacement for the earlier Columbia Theatre on Powell St. lost in 1906. In June 1906 Gottlob and Marx had announced a New Columbia Theatre to be built at Van Ness and Geary, a project that never happened. From 1907 until 1910 they did their shows at the Van Ness Theatre, Van Ness and Grove.
Architects: Walter Bliss and William Faville. Two members of the firm were sent to Europe to study the best examples of theatre architecture. The reported cost of the project was $850,000. The facade's polyxchrome terracotta is by Gladding, McBean & Co.
A report on the theatre, then under construction, in the January 1909 issue of The Architect and Engineer. Thanks to Bob Ristelhuber for locating the article for a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
The rendering for the new theatre got the color treatment in the April 21, 1909 issue of The American Architect. It's available as a print from
St. Croix Architecture.
A section of the building, under construction at the time, that appeared in the April 21, 1909 issue of The American Architect.
The theatre received a three page story in the January 22, 1910 issue of the Journal of Electricity, Power and Gas. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for locating this for a post on the
BAHT Facebook page. The full article is reproduced at the bottom of this page.
A page of plans and details that appeared as
Plate 158 in the December 1910 issue of The Brickbuilder. It followed an article beginning on page 271 titled "
Burnt Clay's Share in the Rebuilding of San Francisco" that included the two pages of plans seen here plus four photos. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this on Internet Archive. He notes that it's also available on the site
HathiTrust.
A page of interior details appearing as Plate 159 in the December 1910 issue of The Brickbuilder.
Seating capacity: Currently it's 1,040. The original capacity was around 1,700.
Thanks to Glenn Koch for sharing this main floor seating chart from a
copy of the 1915 edition of the San Francisco Blue Book that's in his
collection.
A 1915 chart of the 1st balcony seating. Thanks, Glenn! Sorry, the book didn't give us one for the 2nd balcony. A diagram of the exits for all three seating levels was included in the 1910 program for "The Chorus Lady." It's reproduced down at the bottom of the page.
Stage Specifications:
Proscenium: 36' wide x 32' 5" high
Stage depth: 38' 6" from smoke pocket to last usable lineset.
Apron: 4' 6" from smoke pocket to the lip.
Stage wall-to-wall: 77'
House curtain: operates as either guillotine or traveler from stage right.
Original rigging system: Hemp
Current rigging system: Single-purchase counterweight, operating stage right at stage level.
Number of linesets: 48, with 44' long battens
Weight available: 48,000 lbs
Flyfloor: Stage right at 24'
Grid height: 72'
Stage: trappable and rakeable
Pit: 7'3" below stage level - no lift
Loading: Upstage right to Mason St.
Dressing rooms: 4 small, 2 chorus, all with elevator access.
Road Power: 3 - 400A 3 phase for dimmers, 1 400 A at loading dock, 1 125A for sound + more
Much of the stage data comes from the 1999 edition of "Stage Specs, A Technical Guide to Theatres," published by the League of American Theatres and Producers, Inc. Thanks to Mike Hume for making it available.
The Geary originally had a scene shop at the paint bridge level. Ralph Funicello comments: "The flats would be built in the shop, then moved to the paint frame to be painted, then lowered to the stage."
Early performers at the theatre included Sarah Bernhardt, Maude Adams, Mrs. Patrick Campbell, John Drew, Billie Burke, Basil Rathbone, Ruth Chatterton, Henry Miller, Ina Claire, Fanny Brice, and Lionel and Ethel Barrymore.
A pre-opening ad in the Examiner for the Columbia and the
Van Ness Theatre, also operated by Gottlob & Marx. Thanks to Jon Perdue for locating the ad for a post on the
BAHT Facebook page that also included the two items below.
An Examiner article appearing a week before the grand opening. Thanks to Jon Perdue for locating it.
The Examiner's coverage on January 11, 1910, the day after the opening. Thanks, Jon!
A closer look at the Examiner's illustration. The three major articles from the issue appear in enlarged format at the bottom of the page.
"Devoted to the leading
dramatic and musical attractions." This cover for the September 1910 program for "The Chorus Lady" starring Rose Stahr is from the collection of Jon Perdue. Thanks to Jon for posting it on the BAHT Facebook page. Five interior pages from the program are reproduced at the bottom of the page.
A similar cover was used for the program for the week of May 12, 1913. Frances Starr was appearing "in her greatest triumph," a play titled "The Case of Becky." The cover is on
Calisphere from the Museum of Performance and Design Performing Arts Library.
Movies at the Columbia: A booth was installed at the back of the
2nd balcony in 1913. That summer the theatre had the special projectors
required for newsreels in Kinemacolor, an early color process using
black and white film with alternate frames exposed (and then projected
through) either a red or green filter.
A page from the September 1913 program for celebrated actress Margaret Anglin in "The Taming of the Shrew." Kevin Walsh notes that Sidney Greenstreet was in the cast. Thanks to Rick Bellamy for sharing this from his collection as a post on the
BAHT Facebook page.
The
August 30, 1913 Marysville Daily Appeal had a photo of Ms. Anglin and noted that "The Taming of the Shrew" was one of the plays she was bringing to San Francisco for the upcoming season. The page with the story is on the website of the California Digital Newspaper Collection. The
March 20, 1914 New York Times reported that she was splendid in "Kate" at the Hudson Theatre on Broadway.
Quite a different look for this May 1915 program cover. Thanks to Glenn Koch for sharing it on the
BAHT Facebook page.
An inside page from the May 1915 program. One of the ads is promoting the upcoming engagement of John Drew in "Rosemary," beginning May 17. Thanks, Glenn!
A different version of Ms. Columbia. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for sharing this image of the cover for an unidentified production in a post on the
BAHT Facebook page that featured shots of many 1910s and 1920s program covers on display in 2025 at the San Francisco Public Library.
The movie page from the October 22, 1916 issue of the Chronicle, which
included an ad for D.W. Griffith's "Intolerance" at the Geary. Thanks to
William David French Jr. for digging the page out of the Chronicle
archives for a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
Other early film engagements at the Geary included "The Thief
of Bagdad" with Douglas Fairbanks (1924), and Cecil B. DeMille's "Ten
Commandments" (1924).
The cover for the program for the November 1917 Isadora Duncan engagement. Thanks to Felix Racelis for sharing this image of the program in his collection as a post on the private Facebook group
San Francisco History to the 1920s. And thanks to Art Siegel for spotting the post.
A September 22, 1923 ad in the S.F. Chronicle for the roadshow engagement of Paramount's film "The Covered Wagon." Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating the ad. James Cruze directed a cast featuring J. Warren Kerrigan, Lois Wilson and Alan Hale.
The theatre reopened as the
Wilkes Theatre on January 12, 1925.
A December 9, 1924 Chronicle article located by Art Siegel had reported the sale to Thomas
Wilkes. For a time he and his brother were also
running the
Alcazar. They also operated theatres in Los Angeles and elsewhere. The Chronicle's story noted that "Before opening the Wilkes
Theater its new owner will make many improvements in the house and give
it a thorough overhauling."
Thanks to Glenn Koch for spotting this Wilkes Theatre "White Cargo" postcard on eBay. That production opened on June 15, 1925.
Eugene O'Neill's "Desire Under The Elms" arrived at the Wilkes in May 1926. This was the cover of the program for that production that was found on eBay
by Art Siegel.
Two inside pages from the "Desire Under The Elms" program.
It became the Lurie Theatre on June 20, 1927. The Chronicle reported on June 18, 1927 that "many important changes [were] made in its arrangements. The house has been renovated, the changes including the building of a sound proof wall at the back, whereby street sounds are shut out."
This program from the brief time the theatre was known as the Lurie, was for the Belasco Theater's production of Lionel Barrymore in "Laugh Clown Laugh" from January, 1928. Found on eBay by Art Siegel.
In 1928 Louis Lurie sold his interest in the theatre for $500,000 to Homer Curran and the Wobber Brothers, then operators of the
Curran Theatre next door. With that sale it was renamed the
Geary Theatre on February 6, 1928. For a period, the Shuberts booked both houses.
This ad ran in the Chronicle on February 5, 1928 for "The Scarlet Woman," the first production under the new Geary Theatre name, under the "Direction of Messrs. Shubert and H.F. Curran, playing the same high-class attractions as the Curran." Spotted by Art Siegel.
Herman Wobber (but not a brother) is mentioned as once owning the Geary
in "
H. Wobber - Film Pioneer,"
a June 13, 1965 Examiner obituary.
Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating it. They also note Wobber's interest in the Curran. Earlier he had opened the
Unique, one of the first nickelodeons on Market
after the 1906 earthquake and fire, and later managed the
California and
Imperial. He was also involved in the founding of both Paramount Pictures and
20th Century Fox and financed west coast productions of "Kismet," Girl
of the Golden West" and "Song of Norway."
Another
cover for a program in the San Francisco Public Library collection,
production and date unknown. It's one shared by Bob Ristelhueber in his
2025 post on the
BAHT Facebook page.
A reissue of "Birth of a Nation" played the Geary in September 1930. It was
perhaps the first sound film to play the theatre. The reissue had a
recorded track of music and effects. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for
finding the photo for a post on the
BAHT Facebook page. It was part of an ad for the film in a 1930 issue of Moving Picture News.
"Journey's End" (a talkie with an orchestra on hand as well) played in 1931.
The front of the program for "Bad Girl" in 1931. Thanks to Rick Bellamy for sharing this item from his collection as a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
A production of the Oscar Straus operetta "The Chocolate Soldier" by the Civic Light Opera Company is discussed in a page seven article in the November 28, 1931 Chronicle. Evidently there was no connection between this company and the later Los Angeles and San Francisco Civic Light Opera productions at the Curran. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for finding the article on Newsbank.
Jack Tillmany notes that MGM's film "The Great Ziegfeld" had its west coast
premiere at the Geary on April 11, 1936. It was a reserved seat
engagement with matinee seats at 50 cents and 75 cents with "a few at
$1." Evening screenings were priced at 50 cents, 75 cents, $1 and "a few
at $1.50." Jack comments:
"I'm guessing the 50 cent seats were the
balcony, the 75 cent seats were
main floor, and the 'few' top price seats were the front balcony, aka
loge (to movie patrons). I never knew this one played the Geary. But it
makes sense; it was an important film, and ran 3 hours."
The cover of the program for "The Cocktail Bar," an opera comique by Lloyd Chase, c.1937. It's on Calisphere from the collection of the Museum of Performance & Design Performing Arts Library.
"Citizen Kane" played at the Geary in 1941. Jack Tillmany comments: "It was originally scheduled to open at the Golden
Gate in May 1941, but opened at the Geary instead, where it ran into
July, at 'advanced prices.' In August 1941, It finally made it to the
Golden Gate, at 'popular prices,' where it ran into September 1941."
Walt Disney's "Fantasia" had its San Francisco premiere in full roadshow
"Fantasound" at the Geary in 1941. Thanks to Lou DiCrescenzo for
sharing this Brenkert ad as a post on the Facebook page
35mm Cinema Projector Technology.
"Meet Me in Person!" It's a January 1943 ad for Howard Hughes' "The Outlaw" that was located by Ken McIntyre.
"The Outlaw" had its world premiere engagement
at the Geary in February 1943. It got a four week run and then moved to the
Tivoli. The article appeared in the
February 5 Chronicle.
The February 5 ad Chronicle ad. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for finding these two Chronicle items.
The film "Mourning
Becomes Electra" played the theatre in 1947. Jack Tillmany notes that
it crashed and burned. It was perhaps the last major film to use the theatre
for its initial area engagement.
Two tickets for "Anniversary Waltz" in 1956 from Kevin Walsh's collection. The image was a post on the
BAHT Facebook page.
Marlene Dietrich did a week of shows in 1960. Thanks to Lee Brenkman for sharing these pages, as well as other ads from the program, on the San Francisco Remembered Facebook page.
ACT presented its first season at the Geary in 1967.
A poster for the 1969 run of "Hair" from the website of the Chisholm Larsson Gallery. The show reopened in 1970 at the Orpheum.
Closing in 1989: The theatre suffered major damage during the 1989 earthquake. The ante-proscenium lighting rig ended up on the main floor, along with much of the plaster in the sounding board area. The L.A. Times article about the 1996 reopening commented: "When the quake struck on Oct. 17, 1989, it was just after 5 p.m., well before curtain time for George Coates' 'Right Mind.' 'God was on our side,' recalls longtime ACT actor William Paterson. 'Three hours later it would have been a real disaster.'"
The company took up temporary residence at the renamed Stage Door Theatre (which had just closed as the Regency III) and at the Marines Memorial Theatre for their shows during the seven year fundraising and rebuilding process. In addition to rebuilding the plasterwork in front of the proscenium, other work included expanded restroom facilities, modernizing the lobby areas, and adding elevators backstage and for the lobbies.
The 1996 reopening: The L.A. Times covered the 1996 opening with their article "Geary Theater Stages Comeback after 1989 Quake." Thanks to William David French, Jr. for spotting it.
The building had been officially known as the American Conservatory Theatre since 2006 but now with ACT in the Strand Theatre as well, they started calling this one the Geary again to differentiate it.
In September 2022 it was renamed the Toni Rembe Theatre in honor of Bay Area philanthropist Toni Rembe. There had been a $35 million donation by an anonymous donor. The news was announced in a September 19 post on the A.C.T. Facebook page.
More exterior views:
A March 20, 1909 photo from the personal collection of Glenn Koch. Many thanks to Glenn for sharing this photo and others from his collection appearing on the page.
An April 29, 1909 photo from the Glenn Koch collection.
A May or June 1909 photo. We're looking at the house left side of the building. Note the exit stairs from the two balconies. The photo, from the ACT archives, appears on the
ACT historical timeline page.
A June 1909 photo from the Glenn Koch collection. The photographer was standing where the Curran Theatre is now. Note the slope of the framing for the two balconies.
A September 4, 1909 photo from the Glenn Koch collection. Terracotta is being installed on the facade.
An October 16, 1909 photo from the Glenn Koch collection.
A second take on October 16, 1909. Note the theatre's dressing room and scenery storage wing over on the left. Thanks to Glenn Koch for sharing the photo from his collection.
Nearly ready to go at the end of 1909. It's a Chronicle photo appearing with "
The big screen, no not your TV: over 100 years of San Francisco Theaters," a March 2016 SF Gate photo portfolio.
This slightly wider version of the previous photo appeared in the January 1914 issue of Architect and Engineer. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for finding it for a post on the
BAHT Facebook page.
A c.1910 view of the theatre's dressing room wing on Mason St. It's a
San Francisco Public Library photo. Written on the back is "Actors dressing room. A new departure in theater buildings."
A view that appeared in the January 1912 issue of
Architectural Record. The issue is on the HathiTrust site and features an extensive portfolio depicting the major buildings erected as the city rebuilt following the 1906 earthquake and fire. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for spotting the photo. Note that they got some plants in the pots up above the marquee. That "Marshall's" signage to the right is suggesting you eat their kippered herrings for breakfast.
A facade detail from the January 1914 issue of Architect and Engineer. Bob Ristelhueber found it for a post on the
BAHT Facebook page.
A new facade for "The Mission Play" in 1914. The article appeared in Popular Mechanics.
A c.1915 postcard view looking west on Geary toward the theatre. Thanks to Art Siegel for spotting this one when it was for sale on eBay.
A photo taken during the September 1930 revival run of "Birth of a Nation." This sound version had a synchronized track of music and effects. The photo from the ACT collection is one that's on display in the lobby on the 1st balcony level.
William David French, Jr. calls our attention to the rings of mirrors on top of the urns. They stayed in place until the renovations following the 1989 earthquake. Gary Parks comments: "They're little mirrors mounted in metal rings around the tops of the urns. Not sure why they were put there, maybe there was some architectural lighting involved." In the 1910s and 20s there were plants in the urns.
An October 1930 view with the theatre offering Dorothy Burgess in "The Bird of Flame." Thanks to Jack Tillmany for sharing the photo as a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
It's December 1933 and the Curran is all decked out for "Sailor Beware." The Geary appears to be dark. It's a photo from the Jack Tillmany collection. There's also a smaller version with different cropping on the
San Francisco Public Library website.
"Fantasia," got the roadshow treatment in 1941. The Geary was the only theater within 400 miles of San Francisco to present the film and one of only 14 in the country to show it in Disney's revolutionary stereo process called "Fantasound." Walt and his wife attended. It's an uncredited photo in the
San Francisco Public Library collection.
Walt, his wife, and the gang discussing "Fantasia." It's a News Call-Bulletin photo in the
San Francisco Public Library collection.
"The Only Girl" is at the Geary and "Suds In Your Eye" at the Curran in November 1945. It's a photo by an unknown photographer appearing on the
Open SF History Project website. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for spotting it in the collection.
A 1958 view west with some unidentifiable show at the Geary. "The Music Man" is at the Curran, a show that debuted on Broadway in 1957 and opened in San Francisco with Forrest Tucker on October 28, 1958. The photo appeared on the Facebook page
Vintage San Francisco to plug a 2015 exhibit of found images of the city at Glass Key Photo in the Haight.
A fine 1963 view with the Civic Light Opera production of "How To Succeed..." at the Curran. It's a shot from 4x5 Gallery that appeared on the Facebook page
Vintage San Francisco. Lily Castello also had it on the
San Francisco Remembered page.
A November 29, 1988 Chronicle photo appearing with "
The big screen, no not your TV: over 100 years of San Francisco Theaters," a March 2016 SF Gate photo portfolio.
An uncredited view that appeared on the now-vanished website Soul Of America.
A 2008 facade view by Mike Hoffman appearing with the
Wikipedia article on American Conservatory Theatre. The photo also makes an appearance on a 2020 post about the theatre on the
San Francisco Heritage Facebook page.
A view from the
Theatre Historical Society on Flickr. It's in an album of 245 views taken at the organization's 2008 Bay Area conclave.
A 2013 Google shot with Mason St. on the left. The brick building down Mason toward the parking garage is the dressing room wing of the theatre.
Looking west toward the Geary with the Curran Theatre (1922) beyond. That's Mason Street at the left. Photo: Bill Counter - 2015
The top of the windows at the level of the 2nd balcony lobby. Photo: Bill Counter - 2015
It looks like an array of traditional Corinthian columns until you notice the columns nearest the windows are polychrome terracotta fruits and vegetables. Photo: Bill Counter - 2015
A marquee detail. Under the other two arches it says Comedy and Tragedy. Photo: Bill Counter - 2015
An open-mouthed thespian on the marquee. Photo: Bill Counter - 2015
The center entrance. Photo: Andra Young -
San Francisco Remembered Facebook page - 2016
Looking west along the entrance toward the Curran. Photo: Bill Counter - 2015
Another entrance view. Photo:
BW Chicago on Flickr - 2008
Ornate blue and cream terracotta panels flank the entrance doors. Photo: Bill Counter - 2015
A look upward. Photo: Andra Young -
San Francisco Remembered Facebook page - 2016
Dark for over a year with the lights not coming back on until January 2022. The theatre closed due to Covid restrictions in March 2020. Photo: Bill Counter - May 2021
Banners up for the new name, the Toni Rembe Theater. It's a photo that appeared with a September 2022 post on the
A.C.T. Facebook page.
Pages from the September 1910 program for "The Chorus Lady" from the collection of Jon Perdue:
Thanks, Jon!
Articles about the opening that appeared in the Examiner on January 11, 1910:
Thanks to Jon Perdue for locating the articles.
From the January 22, 1910 issue of
the Journal of Electricity, Power and Gas:
More information: Wikipedia has an article on ACT.
Other Columbia Theatres: See the page on the pre-1906 Columbia Theatre on Powell St. Just to keep it fun, the Tivoli Theatre at 70 Eddy St. was called the Columbia from 1924 to 1930. The 1909 vintage Orpheum Theatre at 147 O'Farrell St. was renamed the Columbia in 1930. It kept that name until its demolition in 1937.
The Geary / Toni Rembe Theatre pages: | back to top - history + exterior views | interior views |
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