![]() The center in 2009 | |
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Former names | Wells Fargo Center for the Arts (2005–2016) |
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Address | 50 Mark West Springs Rd Santa Rosa, CA 95403 [1] |
Coordinates | 38°29′36″N122°44′57″W / 38.4932°N 122.7492°W |
Owner | Luther Burbank Memorial Foundation |
Type | Performing arts center |
Capacity | 1,612 (Ruth Finley Person Theater) 399 (East Auditorium) |
Construction | |
Opened | 1981 |
Construction cost | $4.5 million |
Website | |
http://lutherburbankcenter.org/ |
The Luther Burbank Center for the Arts (sometimes called the LBC), and previously known as the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts from March 2005 to March 2016) is a performance venue located just north of Santa Rosa, California, near U.S. 101. The facility is owned and operated by the Luther Burbank Memorial Foundation, a non-profit arts organization established in 1979. [2]
The principal performance space is the Ruth Finley Person Theater, which seats 1,612 around a 58-foot (18 m) wide stage, [3] with no seat further than 75 feet (23 m) from the stage. [4] In addition to performing arts, the Center offers facilities for parties and community events.
The Center's smaller venues include:
The Center presents more than 100 performances each year. Many notable artists have performed at the Center. Resident companies include the North Bay Stage Company and Roustabout Theater. [12]
Other tenants include the Santa Rosa Original Certified Farmers Market and various medical and educational organizations like Anova Center for Education. [13]
The Foundation purchased the property from the Christian Life Center in the 1970s for $4.5 million. The facility opened to the public in 1981. [14] Henry Trione, a philanthropist affiliated with Wells Fargo bank, assembled a group of donors, dubbed "Henry's Angels", who purchased the property for $4.5 million cash in a bankruptcy court in 1981. [15] In 2006, the Foundation sold the naming rights to Wells Fargo Bank for ten years, coming into effect on March 12, 2005. [16] The foundation continued to own and operate the center, [17] which reverted to its original name on March 12, 2016. [18] [19] The center's east wing was heavily damaged in the Tubbs fire. [20]
The venue was the site of the taping of comedian Lewis Black's fourth album, Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center Blues , and the final recorded performance by legendary comedian George Carlin, his 14th HBO special, It's Bad for Ya .