The Bruns Amphitheater was home to California Shakespeare Theater, or “Cal Shakes,” for over three decades.
In the wake of California Shakespeare Theater folding after a half-century, the amphitheater that hosted its performances for nearly 35 years is ready for a new tenant. East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) announced its availability in late March.
“We’ve certainly had some interest already, which is great,” said Andrea Pook, EBMUD’s senior public information representative.
The former tenant, also known as Cal Shakes, originally formed as the Berkeley Shakespeare Festival in the 1970s, spending its early years holding productions in East Bay churches and venues before settling into Berkeley’s John Hinkel Park. The company remained there throughout the 1980s before moving its productions to the newly constructed Bruns Memorial Amphitheater in 1991.
Its outdoor stage in the Orinda hills was home to live performances of classic and contemporary theater, hosting award-winning actors such as Colman Domingo, Annette Bening and Zendaya. The Bruns held its first live music event in 2014.
The final Cal Shakes show to grace the Bruns stage was its 50th anniversary production of Shakespeare’s “As You Like It” back in September 2024, bolstered by emergency fundraising.
In a social media post last November, the theater company’s board of directors and executive director Clive Worsely confirmed the suspension of its operations and detailed the financial obstacles faced by Cal Shakes in recent years.
The post also confirmed that the company’s scenic department, which built theatrical scenery for several local theaters, will continue to employ staff and carry on work as a new entity, California Scenic Fabrication, based out of Concord.
EBMUD accepted proposals from potential tenants, either single-entity or a group, to continue running the approximately six-acre site as a community performing arts venue. Interested parties had the opportunity to tour the property between April 1 and 15, with proposals due by
May 20.
The amphitheater seats about 540 people, with an on-site parking area for 200 cars.
The property tours were intended to give interested parties a closer look at the range of existing on-site facilities and their possible maintenance needs, “so that they can kind of see what may or may not be needed, depending on what they want to use it for,” said Pook.
These include a concession area, an indoor meeting space, ticket booth, parking area, picnic areas, actor dressing rooms, and permanent restrooms, among others.
“It’s a really beautiful location,” Pook said, adding that the 15-year lease includes something new as well.
“I think one thing that’s different this time is that when the theater area is not being used, East Bay MUD would like the opportunity to utilize it for our own educational or meeting purposes,” she said.
“It’s kind of a new day,” she continued, noting that lease pricing depends upon what kind of proposals they receive.
EBMUD has not had a formal education program for several years, said Pook, and now that the agency does, it wants to ensure facility usage aligning with its mission when the theater itself is not in use for productions.
Specifically, the lease terms require the lessee to include sustainable practices and/or watershed education into facility operation or programming. EBMUD will also reserve the right to hold meetings, workshops, educational activities and other community outreach events when the theater is not hosting performances.
EBMUD also notes that potential lessees should be aware of required compliance with the local noise level and operational hour ordinances.
Pook recognized the unique opportunity the vacancy has presented for the agency’s community presence in the East Bay and emphasized EBMUD’s hundred-year commitment to service in the region.
Scott Hill, EBMUD’s manager of watershed and recreation, echoed Pook in looking forward to a bright future for the site.
“This performing arts space is surrounded by nearly a thousand acres of beautiful watershed land that EBMUD cares for,” he said. “We would love to find a lessee that appreciates the serenity of the area and supports the ongoing conservation of the surrounding watershed lands.”
