Perris Theater
PERRIS, CA
Located in the heart of downtown Perris, California, the historic Perris Theater has long stood as a community landmark. Built in 1946 in the Art Deco style, the theater evolved from an open-air venue into a cherished icon. Informed by extensive community outreach and engagement with City leadership, the design transformation will deliver a dynamic, future-ready performance venue—one that honors its legacy while serving as a catalyst for the arts and a symbol of Perris’s cultural future.
Project Category
Civic
Status
In progress
Client
City of Perris
Size
29,800 sq. ft.
500-seat venue
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The design preserves the iconic blade marquee as a civic landmark, with the new facade extending the lines of the sign, repeating as it wraps the building. This folded veil form is extruded with glass and a screen of evacuated solar tubes that filter light, forming a theatrical curtain around the performance and rehearsal spaces. The primary performance space faces both inside and out. Inside, the 500-seat venue includes a stage, orchestra pit, fly tower, and back-of-house support spaces. The front-of-house features a public lobby, box office, and community gathering spaces. Lush rooftop gardens and green roofs top the upper levels, enhancing sustainability.
The theater also opens to the outdoors, to the adjacent park for open-air performances. Seamless connections between the theater and parkland activate the downtown and invite year-round engagement. The outdoor stage and generous green lawn with inclusive seating provide a flexible space for performances and community events. The central green is complemented by a café, picnic areas, a children’s play zone, and native landscaping—creating a vibrant, accessible destination for all.
CREDITS
AUX Team: Brian Wickersham, Brian Davis, John Bohn, Matthew Aulicino, Sabina Lira, Liu Qiao, Ming Chen, Alondra Fernandez
Consultant Team: OJB Landscape Architecture, TY Lin, Gardiner and Theobald