The John Anson Ford Amphitheatre, officially nicknamed The Ford, is a music venue in the

Hollywood Hills The Hollywood Hills is a residential neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. It borders Studio City, Universal City and Burbank on the north, Griffith Park on the north and east, Los Feliz on the southeast, Hollyw ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. The 1,200-seat outdoor

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (American English, U.S. English: amphitheater) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ('), meani ...

is situated within the

Cahuenga Pass The Cahuenga Pass (, ; Tongva: ''Kawé’nga''), also known by its Spanish name Paseo de Cahuenga, is a low mountain pass through the eastern end of the Santa Monica Mountains in the Hollywood Hills district of the City of Los Angeles, Califor ...

within the

Santa Monica Mountains The Santa Monica Mountains are a coastal mountain range in Southern California, next to the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Transverse Ranges. The Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area encompasses this mountain range. Because of its p ...

, directly across the U.S. 101 freeway from and the official sister venue of the

Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre and Urban park, public park in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in the United States by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018 and was listed on ...

. Located in a County regional park, the facility is owned by the

County of Los Angeles Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...

and operated in partnership with th
Ford Theatre Foundation
and the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation. Built in 1920 and named after LA County Supervisor John Anson Ford in 1976, the Ford has been operated by the

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic (LA Phil) is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. The orchestra holds a regular concert season from October until June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall and a summer season at the Hollywood Bowl from ...

since 2020.

History

Christine Wetherill Stevenson and The Pilgrimage Play

An amphitheatre was built in 1920 as a venue for The Pilgrimage Play. The author, Christine Wetherill Stevenson, believed the rugged beauty of the Cahuenga Pass would provide a dramatic outdoor setting for the play. And for this reason, Stevenson named it the Pilgrimage Theatre. Together with Mrs. Chauncey D. Clark, she purchased the land along with that on which the

now sits. A wooden, outdoor amphitheatre was built on the site and the play was performed by noted actors every summer from 1920 to 1929, until the original structure was destroyed by a brush fire in October 1929.

Rebuild and Renaming

A new theatre was constructed of poured concrete and designed in the style of ancient Judaic architecture to resemble the gates of

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

on the same site and opened in 1931. The Pilgrimage Play was again performed there, interrupted only by

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In 1941 the land was deeded to the County of Los Angeles. The Pilgrimage Play continued to be presented until a lawsuit in 1964 forced its closure because of its religious nature. Still, the bridge connecting the Ford to Cahuenga Boulevard over U.S. 101 was named the Pilgrimage Bridge, in honor of the play. In 1976, the Pilgrimage Theatre was renamed the John Anson Ford Theatre in honor of the late LA County Supervisor's significant support of the arts. John Anson Ford (1883–1983) helped found the LA County Arts Commission, encouraged the Board of Supervisors to support the building of The Music Center and led the County's acquisition of

Descanso Gardens Descanso Gardens is a botanical garden located in La Cañada Flintridge, California, La Cañada Flintridge, Los Angeles County, California. It sits on the northern edge of the San Rafael Hills. Descanso Gardens features a wide area, mostly f ...

, among many other achievements. The 1,200 seat amphitheatre and an 87-seat indoor black box theatre built underneath the amphitheatre in 1971 were used intermittently for Shakespearean theatre, jazz concerts and dance performances until former County Supervisor Ed Edelman revived the historic theatre, spurring the creation of the Ford Amphitheatre Summer Season (originally called "Summer Nights at the Ford") in 1993 and obtaining funding for capital improvements to the facility.

Ford Theatres Project

Starting in 2014, the Ford Theatres began the process of undergoing a series of renovations that would rehabilitate and improve the current historic theatre and add new facilities and amenities within the current boundaries of the Ford Theatres property. After two years of renovations, the Ford reopened in 2016 with completion of Phase One of th
Ford Theatres Project

Summer Season and Partnership Program

The Ford summer season's partnership program was designed to enable Los Angeles County music, dance and theatre groups to produce successfully in a major venue. Unlike a typical presenting model, groups and producers are selected through a competitive application process and receive front of house, production and marketing support, while keeping the bulk of the box office proceeds. From that first summer series in 1993, the program has supported hundreds of local arts organizations and producers. The Ford Theatres presents an eclectic season of music, dance, theatre, film and family events reflective of the communities that comprise Los Angeles County. In addition to its multidisciplinary partnership program, the Ford's summer season includes a 10-part series showcasing artists from around the world, a six-part series for families and interactive participatory arts events that take place at its amphitheatre in Hollywood and at public sites across the County.

References

External links

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100-Year Timeline
{{Authority control Theatres in Los Angeles Hollywood Hills Amphitheaters in California Theatres completed in 1920 Theatres completed in 1931 Landmarks in Los Angeles Santa Monica Mountains Event venues established in 1920 Music venues in Los Angeles