Avenal Theater

…the status should be “open” and no longer restoring…

Thought I’d add another shot of this beautiful marquee: View link

World premiere of “Stricken” on June 25 at the Avenal Theater.

Here is a photo:
http://tinyurl.com/yl9y4qp

If the creek don’t rise, the grand re-opening will be May 1, 2110.

I was at first puzzled by M. Gerdes post above, expressing disappointment that the terrazzo was supposedly not saved. Mea culpa. I can see by the way I worded things in my October 13, ‘09 post that this could easily be erroneously ascertained. What I was trying to say was that the terrazzo and the tiled Ladies restroom had survived the fire intact, and therefore did not need to be replicated. So, to clarify, when one enters the rebuilt Avenal, and feels surrounded essentially by the “old” Avenal, it should be kept in mind that everything visible IS NEW, EXCEPT for the terrazzo, and the tiled walls of the Ladies restroom. My apologies for the confusion.

I did get the aforementioned look-see of the Avenal last Thursday. My thanks to Terry Headrick and his associates on the site for letting me have a good look at the rebuilding progress. It is truly going to be a class act. The facade tower is essentially done, except for the neon. The marquee is under construction, and will reuse the original metal AVENAL letters. The circular lobby is well underway, with the metal mesh in place for plastering the layered ribbed coves of the ceiling. Removal of fire-damaged surfaces on the auditorium walls revealed remnants of the original 1930s painted decoration, dating from before the more well-known Moderne redo and enlargement of the theatre in the 40s. The auditorium will be triplexed, with a larger theatre for both movies and live events down front in the original stage/screen area, and two small movie theatres to the rear and sides. The original wall and ceiling murals are going to be replicated. Light fixtures are also being replicated. The original blueprints have been carefully consulted on all points. Nearly everything that will greet the public when the theatre reopens will be new—replicated from the old, except the terrazzo sidewalk and the tilework in the Ladies restroom. However, one will truly feel they are seeing the original theatre in its pristine glory. It is going to be amazing. The concrete shell of the auditorium has been retained. Between the side of the auditorium and an alley out back is a little complex of new structures and a courtyard, which will act as an adjunct facility for events held at the theatre.

It’s called a “print” on their website.

Vintage photo of the Avenal.
View link

First, to answer the above poster: I, for one, have never seen any interior photos of the theater—vintage or otherwise. How I wish I’d taken photos when inside on the night my friend took the abovementioned neon photo of the exterior!

We visited the site once more last weekend on the way to our usual yearly family event in Visalia. Absolutely nothing has been done to the theater itself since my last visit/posting, save for the installation of a tidy wooden fence across the entrance/ticket lobby, complete with decorative lattice along the top, and a locked door. Reconstruction of the storefront to the left of the theater entrance was undertaken this year, and is almost complete. Like the storefront to the right of the theater which was rebuilt a couple of years ago, it is not an exact replica of what was originally there, but harmonizes fine with the streetscape. At some point, the reconstruction of the theater facade will necessitate removing portions of these new storefronts. The streamlined walls bearing the poster cases which face the street have been carefully retained and built around. It almost looks a little surreal.

Well, here I am again one year later. This last weekend we did our family gathering in Visalia, and we swung by the Avenal on the way home. It looks the same in front as it did when I last posted. Around the back, however, it was a slightly different story. The “sound blister” has been cut away, and that enabled me to see into, and photograph, the ruins of the auditorium. Debris has been cleared away, and the charred heavy beams of the roof are still silouhetted against the sky. The interior wall surfaces look saveable—scorched, and in some places crumbled. The matching circular mural vignettes depicting spear-wielding men on horseback which flank the proscenium are damaged, but restorable. The fluted plaster proscenium is scorched and water-damaged, and will have to be replaced.

During the intervening past year, I have been told that the legal proceedings regarding the cause of the fire, and who was responsible, have been continuing.

Many more photos of this theater can be seen here. Click on each photo to enlarge.

My company, Synthesis Design Group, has been hired by the city of Avenal to restore the Avenal Theater, after its demise by a major fire. If anyone has pre-fire or historic photos of the theater, please contact me, via e-mail at Any help would be very much appreciated, as we are trying to restore the building as accurately as possible to the original condition. It is a very special building and with time it will return to its former beauty.
Thanks!
Roger Klemm