Starlight Bowl (San Diego)
Encyclopedia
The Starlight Bowl is an amphitheater located in Balboa Park in San Diego, California
. It was constructed for the 1935-1936 California Pacific International Exposition and seats 4,300. It was originally named the Ford Bowl because the automobile manufacturer
sponsored outdoor concerts there during the exposition by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir
, the San Francisco Symphony
, and other performers.
The amphitheater sits almost directly under the landing path for San Diego International Airport
. During performances the conductor has a set of lights that indicate the noise level from passing planes. When the noise reaches a certain level the conductor signals everyone to pause, and the musicians and performers freeze in place until the plane has passed. Audience members regard the "freeze" as part of the performance, and longtime attendees like to recount awkward pauses from long-ago shows. Dancers sometimes have to balance on one foot in mid-step for ten to fifteen seconds, holding a pose, and then resume their routine, singing and dancing as if nothing happened. Singers are sometimes left in the middle of an a capella solo, having to (hopefully) find the right note again after the pause. The theater has sometimes been dubbed by insiders as the stop-and-go theater.
Another quirk of the performances is the "little red box," a prop which has been used in (nearly) all performances since 1945 - sometimes as background or part of a set, and other times carried on stage by the performers or even passed around from one to another. Performers consider the box a kind of good luck charm, while audience members enjoy trying to spot the box in each production.
The San Diego Civic Light Opera has struggled in recent years, and in 2011 (which would have been the company's 65th season) no productions were mounted.
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
. It was constructed for the 1935-1936 California Pacific International Exposition and seats 4,300. It was originally named the Ford Bowl because the automobile manufacturer
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
sponsored outdoor concerts there during the exposition by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir
Mormon Tabernacle Choir
The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, sometimes colloquially referred to as MoTab, is a Grammy and Emmy Award winning, 360-member, all-volunteer choir. The choir is part of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . However, the choir is completely self-funded, traveling and producing albums to...
, the San Francisco Symphony
San Francisco Symphony
The San Francisco Symphony is an orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980, the orchestra has performed at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall. The San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra and the San Francisco Symphony Chorus are part of the organization...
, and other performers.
History
Starlight Bowl is the outdoor home of the San Diego Civic Light Opera, also called Starlight Musical Theatre, which presents several Broadway musicals each summer. The Civic Light Opera company was founded in 1945. It is one of the oldest continuously producing musical theatre companies in the United States.The amphitheater sits almost directly under the landing path for San Diego International Airport
San Diego International Airport
San Diego International Airport , sometimes referred to as Lindbergh Field, is a public airport located northwest of the central business district of San Diego, California and from the Mexico – United States border at Tijuana, Mexico...
. During performances the conductor has a set of lights that indicate the noise level from passing planes. When the noise reaches a certain level the conductor signals everyone to pause, and the musicians and performers freeze in place until the plane has passed. Audience members regard the "freeze" as part of the performance, and longtime attendees like to recount awkward pauses from long-ago shows. Dancers sometimes have to balance on one foot in mid-step for ten to fifteen seconds, holding a pose, and then resume their routine, singing and dancing as if nothing happened. Singers are sometimes left in the middle of an a capella solo, having to (hopefully) find the right note again after the pause. The theater has sometimes been dubbed by insiders as the stop-and-go theater.
Another quirk of the performances is the "little red box," a prop which has been used in (nearly) all performances since 1945 - sometimes as background or part of a set, and other times carried on stage by the performers or even passed around from one to another. Performers consider the box a kind of good luck charm, while audience members enjoy trying to spot the box in each production.
The San Diego Civic Light Opera has struggled in recent years, and in 2011 (which would have been the company's 65th season) no productions were mounted.