In a move that crosses the conventional boundaries between sports and the arts, the San Francisco Giants have officially taken ownership of the historic Curran Theatre, a staple of Union Square's cultural scene. As announced yesterday, Carole Shorenstein Hays passed the torch to the major league baseball team, dealing the baton of stewardship over to the San Francisco Giants, a transaction that was kept tightly under wraps until the revelatory announcement. "Acquiring the Curran expands our commitment to San Francisco and reinforces our core belief that sports, arts and culture are essential to San Francisco’s identity, economy and resurgence," Giants President and CEO Larry Baer said, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
The Curran, with over a century's worth of performances under its resplendently ornate ceiling, has been a significant player in the theater world, hosting everything from "Wicked" before it hit Broadway to the renowned "Phantom of the Opera" installation. With the Giants now stepping up to bat, the Curran's legacy seems poised to continue unabated. "It was essential to me that its next stewards would ensure it remains a vibrant home for artists and audiences alike," Shorenstein Hays told The San Francisco Standard, expressing her satisfaction with the Giants at the helm. In an interesting twist, BroadwaySF will remain to manage the theater's day-to-day operations, ensuring that showgoers will continue to enjoy their scheduled programming.
Mayor Daniel Lurie has hailed the acquisition as a "landmark moment," viewing it as a strong vote of confidence in the city's downtown area and its potential for revival. Meanwhile, BroadwaySF's general manager, Jamie Budgett, expressed positivity about the new partnership, saying, "We look forward to welcoming the San Francisco Giants as our new landlords," in a statement obtained by The San Francisco Standard.
The Giants are no strangers to the arts, having already ventured into artistic venue ownership, similar to their MLB counterparts who own contiguous performance spaces adjacent to their stadiums. However, this move marks a new inning, with the Curran uniquely situated a mile and a half away from Oracle Park. According to Baer, this venture is to act as an additive, rather than a distraction — boosting the baseball team's resources. "To the extent this becomes a good business for us, it'll just add to our resources to make the baseball team even better," he elaborated in a conversation with the San Francisco Chronicle.
