The Old Globe

The Old Globe is a professional regional theatre complex located in Balboa Park, San Diego, California, known for producing a wide range of classical and contemporary plays and musicals. Founded in 1935, the institution has developed national prominence through premieres, collaborations with Broadway producers, and long-running festivals. It operates multiple performance spaces, maintains conservatory-style training programs, and engages in extensive community partnerships across San Diego County.

History

Founded during the 1935 California Pacific International Exposition, the company emerged alongside institutions such as the San Diego Museum of Art, Museum of Man (San Diego), San Diego Zoo, California Pacific International Exposition itself and the civic initiatives of Mayor Ralph S. Bauer. Early associations included artists and administrators connected to the Federal Theatre Project and cultural leaders who later worked with venues like the Los Angeles Theatre Center and Pasadena Playhouse. After wartime closures, the company was revived by civic leaders influenced by repertory movements in New York City, Chicago, and San Francisco. In the postwar era, administrators forged relationships with producers from Broadway, directors linked to the American Conservatory Theater, and playwrights associated with Eugene O'Neill Theater Center. The complex sustained growth amid urban development projects promoted by the Works Progress Administration legacy and collaborations with performing arts funders such as the National Endowment for the Arts and foundations patterned after the Guggenheim Foundation. Key artistic directors and guest artists included figures who also worked with Lincoln Center, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Royal Shakespeare Company, St. Ann's Warehouse, and touring ensembles from Royal National Theatre and The Old Vic.

Architecture and Facilities

The site occupies a cluster of theatres and rehearsal spaces adjacent to landmarks like the Balboa Park botanical gardens and the San Diego Natural History Museum. The original 1935 stage drew architectural vocabulary from the same Spanish Colonial Revival style visible in the California Tower and House of Hospitality (San Diego). Postwar reconstruction in 1948 and expansions in 1968 integrated modern theatrical technologies pioneered at institutions like Arena Stage and technical standards comparable to facilities at Juilliard and Carnegie Mellon University's theatre programs. Performance venues within the complex include a large outdoor or covered stage modeled on Elizabethan thrust stages reminiscent of Shakespeare's Globe, a 300–700-seat proscenium house influenced by designs at the Guthrie Theater and Cleveland Play House, and an intimate black box comparable to spaces at Steppenwolf Theatre Company and Sundance Institute. Support spaces—costume shops, scenic workshops, and scene docks—reflect production infrastructures used by touring companies from Cirque du Soleil and national tours associated with Nederlander Organization. Accessibility upgrades followed standards promoted by the Americans with Disabilities Act implementation and partnerships with municipal planning from the City of San Diego.

Productions and Programming

Season programming spans Shakespearean cycles, new play development, musical theater, and revivals, connecting to playwrights and composers who have worked with Stephen Sondheim, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Arthur Miller, August Wilson, and Tennessee Williams. The company has premiered works that later transferred to Broadway houses such as the Shubert Theatre (New York City), collaborating with producers from Nederlander Organization, Jujamcyn Theaters, and artistic teams associated with Roundabout Theatre Company and Manhattan Theatre Club. Festival programming echoes models from the Stratford Festival, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, while commissioning partnerships have included playwrights laureate from institutions like Yale School of Drama, Brown University, and the University of California, San Diego. Guest directors and designers often maintain concurrent appointments at Royal Shakespeare Company, NYTW, Lincoln Center Theater, and regional houses such as Mark Taper Forum and Long Wharf Theatre.

Education and Community Outreach

Training programs offer conservatory-style instruction, internships, and apprenticeships, drawing pedagogical frameworks from the Juilliard School, Yale School of Drama, and the University of California, San Diego theatre programs. Youth initiatives partner with San Diego-area public institutions including the San Diego Unified School District, local chapters of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, and arts advocacy groups modeled on the League of American Orchestras educational partnerships. Community outreach encompasses residency programs mirroring models at Arena Stage and touring workshop practices similar to those of Kennedy Center initiatives. Playwright labs and dramaturgy workshops have connections to national new play networks such as National New Play Network and development labs following structures used by Sundance Institute's Theatre Program.

Awards and Recognition

Over its history the organization has received multiple regional honors and national acknowledgments, with productions and artists recognized by institutions such as the Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, Obie Award, and local accolades from the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle. Resident artists, directors, and designers associated with the company have earned invitations and prizes from the Pulitzer Prize committees, fellowships from the MacArthur Foundation, Guggenheim Fellowship, and grants awarded by the National Endowment for the Arts. Touring transfers and co-productions have been cited in coverage by outlets tied to New York Times theater criticism and in trade recognition from organizations like Playbill and Theatre Communications Group.

Category:Theatres in San Diego, California