San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center

Coordinates: 37°46′44.83″N 122°25′13.64″W / 37.7791194°N 122.4204556°W / 37.7791194; -122.4204556

Beaux-Arts style War Memorial Veterans Building and courtyard park, seen from Van Ness Avenue.

The San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center (SFWMPAC) is located in San Francisco, California. It is one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States. It covers 7.5 acres (3 hectares) in the Civic Center Historic District, and totals 7,500 seats among its venues.

Performing arts

Opera, symphony, modern and classical dance, theatre, recitals, plays, lectures, meetings, receptions, special screenings, and gala events all have a place and occur at the Center.

History

The complex was developed in the 1920s on two blocks on Van Ness Avenue facing San Francisco City Hall from the west. The "War Memorial" name commemorates all the people who served in the First World War, which ended seven years before the project commenced. It was designed by Arthur Brown Jr in 1927-1928, and is one of the last Beaux-Arts style structures erected in the United States. The project resulted in the construction of a matched pair of buildings across a formal courtyard park: the War Memorial Opera House; and the multi-purpose Veterans Building next door. Both were completed and opened in 1932.

The upper floors of the Veterans Building housed the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art from 1932 to 1994. In 1980 the new Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall opened, on a site on Van Ness across the sidestreet from the Opera House, as part of the SFWMPAC complex.

United Nations

The SFWMPAC has historical significance. On June 26, 1945, the United Nations Charter was signed in the Veterans Building's Herbst Theatre by the group of 50 founding nations, following the two-month-long United Nations conference in the Opera House.

In 1951, the Treaty of San Francisco, formally ending World War II hostilities with Japan, was signed in the Opera House. The Center has been host to U.S. presidents and foreign heads of state. In 1990 the Center was chosen to host the first Goldman Environmental Prize ceremony, and this prize is now presented annually at the Center.

Performing arts venues

The following venues make up the San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center—SFWMPAC:

War Memorial Opera House, venue in the SFWMPAC

Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall, venue in the SFWMPAC.

War Memorial Opera House building

The War Memorial Opera House, or the Opera House, with 3,146 seats, was built in 1932 as part of the original War Memorial Building. It has been the home of the San Francisco Opera since 1932, as well as the San Francisco Ballet.

Veterans Building

The Herbst Theatre, with 916 seats, is a small concert and lecture/presentation venue. It is a part of the original Veterans Building and was originally named the “Veterans Auditorium”. In 1945 the original United Nations Charter was signed here. In 1977 the theatre was refurbished and renamed.
The Green Room is located on the second floor of the Veterans Building. Originally designed as a lounge for World War I veterans, the room now serves as a performance and reception hall. Several concert and lecture series are held in the Green Room each year, as well as dinners, receptions, fashion shows, recitals, conferences and meetings. The room is also a prime location for fashion photography and video.
The San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery is located in the northeast corner of the Veterans Building. The gallery hosts changing exhibitions of contemporary art.

Davies Symphony Hall building

Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall opened in 1980 and, with 2,743 seats, is the major symphony hall of the city. It has been the home of the San Francisco Symphony since its opening.

Zellerbach Rehearsal Hall

Harold L. Zellerbach Rehearsal Hall is located at the corner of Franklin and Hayes streets, and is directly adjacent to Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall. Zellerbach Rehearsal Hall consists of three rehearsal facilities, which can be used for a multitude of rehearsal purposes and movie shoots.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to War Memorial Veterans Building.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall.

San Francisco attractions

Landmarks	49-Mile Drive Alcatraz Bay Bridge Cable Cars The Castro Chinatown City Hall Cliff House Coit Tower F-Market Streetcar Fairmont Hotel Federal Reserve Bank Ferry Building Fisherman's Wharf Fort Mason Fort Point Ghirardelli Square Golden Gate Bridge Grace Cathedral Haight-Ashbury Jack Kerouac Alley Lombard Street Mark Hopkins Hotel Market Street Mission Dolores Nob Hill North Beach Old U.S. Mint Painted ladies Palace of Fine Arts Pier 39 Public Library Sutro Baths Transamerica Pyramid Treasure Island Union Square

Museums and art	Asian Art Museum Aquarium of the Bay Cable Car Museum California Academy of Sciences Palace of the Legion of Honor Cartoon Art Museum Chinese Historical Society Museum Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum The Walt Disney Family Museum de Young Museum Exploratorium Haas-Lilienthal House Musée Mécanique Museo ItaloAmericano Museum of Performance & Design Museum of the African Diaspora Precita Eyes Randall Museum Ripley's Believe It or Not! San Francisco Museum of Modern Art San Francisco Maritime Railway Museum USS Pampanito Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts Zeum

Parks and recreation	Alamo Square Candlestick Point Corona Heights Crissy Field Dolores Park Glen Canyon Golden Gate National Recreation Area Golden Gate Park Lafayette Park Lake Merced Marina Green McLaren Park Mount Davidson Ocean Beach The Presidio San Francisco Bay Trail San Francisco Zoo Stern Grove Twin Peaks Yerba Buena Gardens

Views	Coit Tower Twin Peaks Seal Rocks/Ocean Beach Baker Beach Golden Gate Bridge Fort Funston Hamon Observation Tower at the de Young Museum Strawberry Hill Crissy Field Pacific Heights Alamo Square/Painted Ladies Top of the Mark Alcatraz Treasure Island Lombard Street Powell-Hyde Cable Car Ferry Building Bernal Hill 49-Mile Scenic Drive Hawk Hill Fort Baker

Entertainment	American Conservatory Theater Bill Graham Civic Auditorium Cow Palace The Fillmore War Memorial and Performing Arts Center Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

Sports	San Francisco Giants AT&T Park Candlestick Park Kezar Stadium

Food and drink	Anchor Steam Boudin Bakery Buena Vista Cafe Dungeness crab Ghirardelli Tadich Grill Tonga Room & Hurricane Bar Top of the Mark

Shopping	Metreon Stonestown Galleria Union Square Westfield San Francisco Centre

National Register of Historic Places listings in San Francisco

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