"The Gymnast"

The Variety Theatre, 5253 W. Adams Blvd., is seen extensively in the film "The Gymnast" (Red Road/Wolfe Releasing, 2006). It's the gym where Dreya Weber and Addie Yungmee learn aerial fabric acrobatics. Ned Farr wrote and directed the film. The cinematography was by Marco Fargnoli.  It's not often that a film gives you the address of the location they're headed to but here Dreya holds out the card for the theatre.

 

 

 

Crossing the street to the building. The club area is in the former bank building on the corner. The theatre building is to the right. 

 

 

 

Coming in the front door. The dressing room, seen later in the film, is off to the right just inside the door, in part of the former lobby. 

 

In the auditorium, setting up some fabric panels for aerial work. That's Allison Mackie, playing the instructor, on the left. Addie Yungmee is helping with the ladder. Dreya is on the right with the booth ports in the background.

 

 Getting up in the air. 

 

"This is Jimmy. He runs the place."

 

Looking toward the stage. 

 

 

Dreya in front of the stage. 

 

 

Addie and Dreya cocooned. 

 

Dreya's husband, played by David De Simone, confronts Addie and tells her to break off the affair she's been having with Dreya. Dreya later leaves him and as the film ends is heading to Vegas where Addie's new job is.

Thanks to Lindsay Blake, of I Am Not a Stalker fame, for spotting the theatre in the film. She has a great selection of shots from the many films and TV shows that have been shot at the Variety and the adjacent Club Fais Do-Do.  

See the page about the Variety Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for more about the building's history and additional photos.

On IMDb: "The Gymnast"

"Never Been Kissed"

In "Never Been Kissed" (20th Century Fox, 1999) Drew Barrymore is seen coming down the stairs in front of the projection booth of the Variety Theatre, 5253 W. Adams Blvd. The film is set in Chicago and she's a reporter for the Sun-Times. On the quest of a big undercover story she goes back to high school. The Variety is used as Delloser Hall, a dance club where she gets stoned. 

The film also features David Arquette, John C. Reilly, Molly Shannon, Garry Marshall, Octavia Spencer and Leelee Sobieski. Raja Gosnell directed. The cinematography was by Alex Nepomniaschy.

 

Meeting one of her teachers, Michael Vartan, at the bar in the Variety Theatre. Yes, there will be a romance. That's the teacher's soon to be ex-girlfriend approaching on the left.

Thanks to Lindsay Blake, of I Am Not a Stalker fame, for including the film in her article about the theatre. She has many, many screenshots from the films and TV shows that have been shot at the Variety and the adjacent Club Fais Do-Do. She credits Owen, of the When Write Is Wrong blog, for spotting the theatre in the "Never Been Kissed."

 

Drew on stage with a feather boa and exhibiting conduct unbecoming a high school student after eating some ganja chocolate cake. 

See the page about the Variety Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for more about the building's history and interior photos.

 

The El Monte Drive-In was another filming location, used for The Court, a teen hangout. 

 

Another shot at the El Monte. Drew and her high school friend Leelee Sobieski aren't deemed cool enough so they're chased away.

Prom interiors were done at the Ebell Club on Wilshire Blvd. A number of other L.A. area locations were also used. 

On IMDb: "Never Been Kissed"

"Crossroads"

 

The karaoke contest at the fictional Club Bayou in New Orleans that's seen in "Crossroads" (Paramount, 2002) was shot at the Variety Theatre, 5253 W. Adams Blvd. Here Britney Spears, Zoe Saldana and Taryn Manning are in the theatre's dressing room before the show agreeing to just get along and put on the best show they can. 

 

They've run away from home and on the way west the car broke down. See, they've just got to win this contest to pay the repair bill and pay for motels on the way. The film also features Anson Mount and Dan Aykroyd. Shonda Rhimes wrote the script and Tamra Davis directed.

 

 

A look toward the stage at the Variety as the girls get announced.  

 

Another shot toward the stage with Britney, Zoe and Taryn doing their thing. 

 

 

Yes, she's a hit! The tip jars are overflowing.

Thanks to Lindsay Blake and her blog "I Am Not A Stalker" for identifying the shooting location of the scene. See her post "Café-Club Fais Do-Do from Crossroads" for more shots at the Variety from this film as well as from other movies and TV shows shot there. Kudos to Jonathan Raines for spotting the article. Also check out Lindsay's entertaining 2009 article about being at the Variety for the scene's three day shoot in 2001.

See the page about the Variety Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for more about the building.

 

 

Britney says goodbye to her on-the-road boyfriend, played by Anson Mount, on the Orange Dr. side of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. In the background, Grauman's Chinese is running "Spy Kids." Beyond the theatre, the steel is starting to rise for the Hollywood & Highland complex. 

 

We're near the end of the film and it's time to go home. Her father, played by Dan Aykroyd, has came west to bring her home to go to med school.

Friends Zoe and Taryn wait with dad as she goes back to the boyfriend after announcing that she's staying in Hollywood. And going to a big audition.

See the pages on the Chinese Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for the history of the 1927 vintage film house along with hundreds of photos.

 

The judges at the big audition scene shot at the Belasco Theatre, 1050 S. Hill St. Some of the arched paneling of the theatre is visible at the back of the main floor.

Although dad came west to bring her home at this moment he's somehow enthusiastically resigned to having her be a singer as he claps along during her number.

This shot toward the house lets you know you're definitely at the Belasco. The giveaways are the plaster decorations on the front of the balcony as well as the lit ovals. It's pre-renovation. In the upper right we can see there are still seats in the balcony.

A look down from the balcony. The auditorium floor hadn't yet been leveled to turn the place into a nightclub. We're looking at the original 1926 stage floor plus a little extension they had built out in front.

A Belasco shot appearing during the end credits. 

A view from a "making of" featurette that's on the film's DVD. Thanks to Lindsay Blake for noting the appearance of the Belasco in the film in her Discover L.A. article "Go On Location: Historic Los Angeles Theatres Featured in Film."

See the pages on the Los Angeles Theatres site about the Belasco Theatre for a history of this 1926 legit house as well as many photos.

On IMDb: "Crossroads"

"The Janky Promoters"

The Warner Grand in San Pedro stands in for a Modesto theatre called the Mercy in Ice Cube's "The Janky Promoters" (Dimension Films, 2009). Never a good sign when the promoters of a show are running for their lives out of the theatre after a mis-managed concert. That's how the film begins. 

The eponymous promoters are Ice Cube as Russell Redds and Mike Epps as Jellyroll. Also featured are Jeezy, Lahmard J. Tate, Darris Love, Lil J.J., Juanita Jennings and Aloma Wright. Ice wrote the screenplay. Marcus Raboy directed. The cinematography was by Tom Priestly Jr. 

 

Running for the car.  Note the "Mercy" neon."

 

 

The pissed-off star shooting at them. 

 

The vista through the broken rear window. Well, that's how the film starts. Then we back up 18 hours to explain how the mess unfolded.  

 

Much earlier in the day: stopping by to check on the load-in and set up for the "Not Sold Out" show.

 

Cleaning the display cases. 

 

Flipping up the seats -- the Warner's are not self-rising.

 

 

At the mix location. 

 

 Setup on the stage. 

 

 

 

A little conversation with Mike Epps over house right.

 

The basement dressing room corridor. 

 

Almost show time. Nice neon change-out on the marquee but with "Warner Grand" still on the vertical.

 

The slim crowd at the boxoffice. 

 

Ice Cube addressing the small crowd and introducing the opener -- a relative. 

 

A discussion offstage right. 

 

The opening act goes on way too long and the star doesn't appear. The crowd gets restless -- and then starts throwing things. 

 

Oh. This is where we came in. The promoters giving up and running for the doors as they're chased by the crowd and Jeezy. 

 

See the pages about the Warner Grand on the Los Angeles Theatres site for a history of the theatre along with many photos. 

 

The after-party was much more successful than the concert. The star who was supposed to perform at the Mercy Theatre showed up to perform. And the janky promoters were there as well, trying to take credit for a successful evening. We're at the Café-Club Fais Do-Do, the former Variety Theatre, 5253 S. Adams St.

 

A view to the rear of the space. 

 

A closer look toward the booth.  

 

See the page about the Variety Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for a history of the venue.

On IMDb: "The Janky Promoters"

"La La Land"

Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) mourns that his favorite jazz club, Van Beek, has been turned into a samba and tapas joint in Damien Chazelle's "La La Land" (Lionsgate, 2016).  "Just pick ONE!" he says. "Do it right."

He's done a drive-by and at the time of this shot is sitting at a drive-in restaurant across the street looking at the building. It's the former Magnolia Theatre, 4403 Magnolia Blvd. in Burbank. In the years since its film house life has been over it's been a recording studio, once owned by Barbra Streisand. See the Magnolia Theatre page on the Los Angeles Theatres site for more on the venue. Thanks to Donavan S. Moye for this screenshot.

Sebastian keeps running into Mia (Emma Stone), an aspiring actress. When they finally start clicking after a number of mis-steps, their first date is to be at the Rialto in South Pasadena to see "Rebel Without a Cause."  Here she's driving by earlier in the day and sees the show on the marquee.

She's late and he's waiting.

He gives up and goes in.

Not able to find him in the darkened theatre she steps out on stage to look into the house.  

The credits are rolling for "Rebel Without a Cause." 

Watching the film at the Rialto.

Projection problems as they're ready to kiss.

 

A "What do we do now?" look. Mia has an idea: they go to the Griffith Observatory.

Wandering by the former jazz club one afternoon. Thanks to Donavan S. Moye for the screenshot.

 Mia holds the doors while Sebastian does a bit of vandalism to their sign.

Mia rents a theatre for her one-woman show. The theatre is the Hayworth at 2511 Wilshire Blvd. Well, the interior is anyway. The exteriors were done at the Variety Theatre on W. Adams Blvd. See the page about the Hayworth Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for more about the venue.

Mia does another drive-by of the location of their first date. Things have changed. See the Los Angeles Theatres pages on the Rialto Theatre for more about this historic venue. The "closed" marquee we see in this shot was accurate until mid-2017. It's now been leased to a church group.

Sebastian, without funding to open his own jazz club, takes a gig with a group called The Messengers, headed by Keith (John Legend). Mia goes to see their first show -- it's at the El Rey Theatre on Wilshire Blvd. 

Sebastian playing at the show at the El Rey. We don't get any exterior shots or see much of the interior. The Los Angeles Theatres El Rey Theatre page has more about this 1937 vintage theatre, now used as a music club.

Sebastian at the keyboard for a photo shoot at the Regent Theatre, 448 S. Main St. The scene starts with Gosling nervously pacing outside in a driveway on the west side of EastWest Studios, 6000 Sunset Blvd., a location whose interior is used for several other scenes. But for this scene, when we go inside we're in the Regent.

The Egyptian columns aren't part of the Regent's normal decor -- they're just in for the shoot. The giveaway is that bit of light fixture we see above the photo on the wall. It's the day of Mia's one-woman show and he's worried that he'll be late for the show. He ends up missing it entirely.

Our obnoxious photographer getting another camera from his assistant. You know, one that works. That purplish glow to the right of the guitar player is part of the Regent's proscenium.

Another view of the photo shoot scene with Keith (John Legend) at the center and Sebastian on the left. Again a bit of the Regent's proscenium is seen as a purple glow in the background. The wizard who does the site Seeing Stars figured the Regent location out. He's got it detailed on a page as Location #43 - the Photo Shoot.

Thanks to Mike Hume for digging through the many well documented pages about the film's locations on the Stars site to find the details about this scene. Mike has a fine page about the Regent on his Historic Theatre Photography site.

Check out the pages about the Regent Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for more about this 1914 vintage film house, now repurposed as a music venue. 

Mia heads into the theatre the afternoon of her show. The exterior of the theatre she rents for the production is the Variety, 5253 W. Adams Blvd. See the page about the Variety Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for more about the building. In recent years it's been used as a music club and events space.

Onstage at the Hayworth before the one night run of her show.

Onstage during Mia's one-woman show. Thanks to theatre detective Mike Hume for this screenshot. And also thanks to Mike for figuring out where these interior scenes were filmed. Visit his great Historic Theatre Photography website for hundreds of photos of theatres he's explored in Los Angeles and elsewhere.

Sebastian at the Variety Theatre after Mia's show. Few people came. Sebastian misses it because of his photo shoot. Mia is depressed and tells Sebastian it's over. "What is?" he asks. "Everything" she says -- and goes home to Boulder City, Nevada. He'll have to drive to Boulder City to get her when that magical phone call from a casting director comes that makes her a star.

Other locations seen include the freeway interchange between the 105 and the 110 for the opening number, the Smokehouse Restaurant in Burbank (where Sebastian plays Christmas music), the Lighthouse Cafe in Hermosa Beach, the Hermosa beach pier, Angel's Flight, the Watts Towers, Griffith Observatory, and the Blind Donkey in Long Beach (Seb's nightclub at the end).


More information: 

Architectural Digest weighed in with "La La Land Set Design" profiling designers David Wasco and Sandy Reynolds-Wasco. E Online has "The Official La la Land Guide To Los Angeles." There's a page about the film on the website for Elle.

 
"La La Land" director Damien Chazelle talks with Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone during filming at the Rialto in South Pasadena. Thanks to Escott O. Norton for posting an album of sixteen photos of the 2015 shoot on the Friends of the Rialto Facebook page. The photos appear courtesy of David Wasco, production designer for the film.

On Curbed L.A. see "LA's Starring Role in 'La La Land'" and "The Ultimate 'La La Land' Filming location Map."

 Discover L.A. put together the "La La Land Virtual Location Tour," a lovely hour-long Zoom Webinar presentation hosted by acclaimed location managers from the film, Robert Foulkes and Tristan Daoussis. Thanks to Mike Hume for spotting the presentation.

The N.Y. Times had a fine story "L.A. Trancendental: How 'La La land' Chases the Sublime" that included several shots from the film. David Ng's December 25, 2016 L.A. Times story "'La La Land' looks beautiful but..." talks about the difficulties of location shooting for this film (and others) with so many historic locations vanishing.

The site Seeing Stars says they have the "world's most comprehensive guide" to the film's shooting locations and it's certainly hard to disagree with that. Pages and pages of well documented information. The photo is from their page about the scene shot at the Regent. Thanks to Mike Hume of Historic Theatre Photography fame for spotting it on the Stars site. 

USA Today has "Your La La Land Cheat Sheet."  The trailer is on YouTube, as is a four minute making-of featurette. 

On IMDb: "La La Land"