CANADA
Curran Theatre
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There are many remarkable landmarks in San Francisco, but there aren’t many that have Broadway shows playing inside them. The Curran Theatre is the exception that happily breaks the rule. Since its grand opening in September 1922 on Geary Street, the Curran Theatre has hosted innumerable musical tours, including Jersey Boys, The Phantom of the Opera, Annie, Wicked, the revival of A Chorus Line and many more. Several people famous outside of Broadway have acted in plays at the Curran Theatre, such as Ian McKellen, Carol Channing, Judy Garland, Mae West and Stacy Keach. With that kind of star power and award winning shows, the Curran Theatre parking situation can be iffy, especially as the Curran can seat up to 1,667 guests rapt in the drama and comedy of the musicals. The interior of the theatre is elaborately decorated, with the plaster rubbed with steel wool such that when it was painted, it looked as if it was wood grain, fashioned by nature, rather than a design of an architect. The seats are the color of the tail end of a summer night’s twilight, complementing the late golden sunset-orange curtain and the brilliant crystal chandelier in the center of the ceiling. While the color scheme of twilight is pleasing to the eye, you wouldn’t want to have to find a space in the Curran Theatre parking lot as the evening show is about to begin. Thankfully, ParkWhiz can handle that problem for a song if you reserve your space in advance.
The theatre’s namesake, Homer Curran, was a writer of musicals, so he knew what actors and musicians would need to make the perfect performance. The Curran Theatre came into existence as a result of the Shubert brothers, a family of popular theatre owners who wanted to break the monopoly of a rival company, the Theatrical Syndicate. They enlisted the help of Homer Curran as a partner, and after successfully raising $800,000, construction began. This relationship was good for both the Shuberts and Curran - the former could strike back at their rival, while the latter could bring shows to California that otherwise never have come, as the Shuberts had the influence and cash to book tours from Europe and the East Coast. After a renovation in 1993 for the running of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera, the lighting has been changed and the elaborate “phone booths” no longer have phones, but the show must go on. And go on it will, even if not all guests have parked. It wouldn’t be very musical if the guests haven’t found a spot at the Curran Theatre parking lot, but with ParkWhiz, you will be there when the curtain rises.
By making use of ParkWhiz, you can book your parking spot in advance, just as you would book a ticket at the Curran’s box office. After booking your spot, print out your parking pass and bring it with you. With your parking pass, you can mosey on up to the theatre without drama, thanks to ParkWhiz.
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Photo By Andreas Praefcke (Own work (own photograph)) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons