LONG BEACH CONVENTION & ENTERTAINMENT CENTER

PACIFIC BALLROOM
The Long Beach Arena is a beloved 13,500 seat venue that is part of the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center (LBCEC). Opening in 1962, the arena has played host to such icons as The Doors, U2, and the Grateful Dead.

To improve the offerings to their clients, the LBCEC wanted to add flexibility and infrastructure to the arena, to allow it to be easier used for large flat floored events. The result of the concept was a large removable grid system that allowed lighting, audio, and scenery or decorations to be quickly and easily hung. And, the whole system being removable allowed the arena to still be used in it's original form.

The new configuration of the arena was named The Pacific Ballroom, and opened to instant success. As a banquet or convention space, the Pacific Ballroom has a banquet capacity of 3,200, a reception capacity of 5,000, and a traditional theatre capacity of almost 4,900.

Michael Ferguson provided theatre planning, theatre design, and performance equipment design and specification as individual effort while at a previous firm.


CIVIC PLAZA
The plaza in front of the Long Beach Performing Arts Theatre is a part of the 400,000 square foot convention and performance facility. Essentially serving as the front door to the Terrace Theatre, the Beverly O'Neill Theatre and the Pacific Ballroom (formerly the Long Beach Arena), the plaza was a space that the City of Long Beach leadership wanted activated, to draw patrons into the facilities.

The location of many public civic events, like the annual tree lighting, TheatreDNA conceived and designed performance lighting and audio systems to create a vibrant and lively space that is able to be used in zones to create performances and activations of different types and sizes.

TheatreDNA provide concept design, performance equipment design and specification, and creative lighting design.