The Music Center's Mark Taper Forum
Opened in 1967, the Mark Taper Forum (Taper) is The Music Center’s smallest and most intimate theatre and was designed for the production of dramas and experimental theater. It was named for S. Mark Taper, a prominent real estate developer, banker and philanthropist. The venue is the ideal stage for dramatic plays and productions by Center Theatre Group and has received virtually every theatrical award including a special Tony for theatrical excellence, which was awarded in 1977.
A circular building that measures 140 feet in diameter, the Forum rises from a reflecting pool. The upper 27 feet of the Forum cantilevers out from the base, which is covered in dark, split-face granite blocks. The dark granite mirrors that of The Music Center's Dorothy Chandler Pavilion across Jerry Moss Plaza.
The Taper’s drum-like structure features a 378-foot-long cast concrete relief mural in an abstract pattern that encircles the theatre and suggests the movements of the performing arts. Designed by sculptor Jacques Overhoff, the relief is a repeating pattern that is seven panels in width with seven repeats, for a total of 49 panels; the artist chose seven panels as the width so the eye would never be able to see the repeating pattern given the circular shape of the building. Inside the Taper, the entrance features a 60-foot wall, created by designer Tony Duquette, called “Curved Wall”, which is composed of 50,800 abalone shell tiles.
Featuring a thrust stage that juts out into the audience, the theatre’s 736 seats are arranged in a semi-circle in classical amphitheater style, surrounding three sides of the stage. This design gives audiences the opportunity to view the performance from a variety of perspectives. As such, the theatre does not feature either a stage arch or curtain.
The Music Center oversaw a $30 million renovation of the Taper interior from 2007–2008 to upgrade its technical capabilities and audience amenities while maintaining the structural integrity of the original design. Award-winning architectural and design firm, Rios Clementi Hale Studios (now known as Rios), led the theatre’s architectural renovation.
As part of their work, the architects doubled the size of the lobby area, enhanced the abalone wall with recessed lighting and added a new main refreshment area. In addition, the lobby now includes mirrored columns a metal mesh wall covering called Cascade Coil Drapery, decorative terrazzo flooring and a raised ceiling and floor. By raising the lobby floor, the architects provided audiences with access to the theatre directly from Jerry Moss Plaza.
Featured at the Mark Taper Forum
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Wed Jun 01 12:00 PM
Sun Jul 03 12:00 PM
Center Theatre Group King James
Mark Taper Forum
In a town that was searching for someone to look up to, no figure loomed as large as Lebron James. Playwright Rajiv Joseph (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo) chronicles the friendship of two Clevelanders as they bond over the rise of the g...Show More
In a town that was searching for someone to look up to, no figure loomed as large as Lebron James. Playwright Rajiv Joseph (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo) chronicles the friendship of two Clevelanders as they bond over the rise of the greatest player in Cavaliers’ history. This new play from the Pulitzer Prize-short lister is hailed as “wonderfully daring, imaginative, and compassionate” (The New York Times).
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Wed Jul 27 12:00 PM
Sun Aug 28 12:00 PM
Center Theatre Group Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man and the Pool
Mark Taper Forum
On the heels of his award-winning Broadway show The New One, which made its West Coast premiere on the Ahmanson stage, comedian and storyteller Mike Birbiglia returns to Center Theatre Group with a tale of life, death, and a ...Show More
On the heels of his award-winning Broadway show The New One, which made its West Coast premiere on the Ahmanson stage, comedian and storyteller Mike Birbiglia returns to Center Theatre Group with a tale of life, death, and a highly chlorinated YMCA pool. With his unique form of comedic storytelling, Birbiglia chronicles a coming-of-middle-age story that asks the big questions: Why are we here? What’s next? And what happens when the items at the doctor’s office that you thought were decorative become quite useful?
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Wed Jun 01 12:00 PM
Sun Jul 03 12:00 PM
Center Theatre Group King James
Mark Taper Forum
In a town that was searching for someone to look up to, no figure loomed as large as Lebron James. Playwright Rajiv Joseph (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo) chronicles the friendship of two Clevelanders as they bond over the rise of the g...Show More
In a town that was searching for someone to look up to, no figure loomed as large as Lebron James. Playwright Rajiv Joseph (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo) chronicles the friendship of two Clevelanders as they bond over the rise of the greatest player in Cavaliers’ history. This new play from the Pulitzer Prize-short lister is hailed as “wonderfully daring, imaginative, and compassionate” (The New York Times).
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Fri Jun 03 7:00 PM
Fri Sep 02 7:00 PM
A TMC Arts Program The Music Center's Dance DTLA
Jerry Moss Plaza at The Music Center
The Music Center's Dance DTLA returns for 11 nights on Jerry Moss Plaza! Enjoy a free dance lesson led by L.A.'s top dance instructors, and dance the night away with us all summer long!
The Music Center's Dance DTLA returns for 11 nights on Jerry Moss Plaza! Enjoy a free dance lesson led by L.A.'s top dance instructors, and dance the night away with us all summer long!
Show LessFree
Learn MoreFree
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Fri Jun 03 7:00 PM
Fri Sep 02 7:00 PM
A TMC Arts Program The Music Center's Dance DTLA
Jerry Moss Plaza at The Music Center
The Music Center's Dance DTLA returns for 11 nights on Jerry Moss Plaza! Enjoy a free dance lesson led by L.A.'s top dance instructors, and dance the night away with us all summer long!
The Music Center's Dance DTLA returns for 11 nights on Jerry Moss Plaza! Enjoy a free dance lesson led by L.A.'s top dance instructors, and dance the night away with us all summer long!
Show LessFree
Learn MoreFree
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Wed Jun 01 12:00 PM
Sun Jul 03 12:00 PM
Center Theatre Group King James
Mark Taper Forum
In a town that was searching for someone to look up to, no figure loomed as large as Lebron James. Playwright Rajiv Joseph (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo) chronicles the friendship of two Clevelanders as they bond over the rise of the g...Show More
In a town that was searching for someone to look up to, no figure loomed as large as Lebron James. Playwright Rajiv Joseph (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo) chronicles the friendship of two Clevelanders as they bond over the rise of the greatest player in Cavaliers’ history. This new play from the Pulitzer Prize-short lister is hailed as “wonderfully daring, imaginative, and compassionate” (The New York Times).
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Wed Jun 29 8:00 PM
Sun Jul 31 6:30 PM
Center Theatre Group Dear Evan Hansen
Ahmanson Theatre
A letter that was never meant to be seen, a lie that was never meant to be told, a life he never dreamed he could have. Evan Hansen is about to get the one thing he’s always wanted: a chance to finally fit in. Dear Evan Hansen is the deep...Show More
A letter that was never meant to be seen, a lie that was never meant to be told, a life he never dreamed he could have. Evan Hansen is about to get the one thing he’s always wanted: a chance to finally fit in. Dear Evan Hansen is the deeply personal and profoundly contemporary musical about life and the way we live it.
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Free tours are available of all The Music Center's theaters.