LOS ANGELES - Today, Majority Leader Karen Bass, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa; Councilmember Bernard Parks and Leimert Park business leaders announced the Vision Theater Renovation Project at a press conference in front of the historic venue.  Financed by $2.4 million secured from the California Cultural and Historical Endowment (CCHE) and more than $7.4 million from the City of Los Angeles, renovations for the Vision Theater will begin in 2008.  

"This marks a new day for the City of Los Angeles. We will bring the Vision to its rightful place at center stage of a revitalized cultural scene. A renovated Vision Theater will be an engine to drive the economic and creative economies of Leimert Park and South LA." – Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

"Leimert Park Village is the heart and soul of Los Angeles' African-American community and the Vision Theater is the symbolic centerpiece.  My office is proud of the role we played in securing $7 million towards our goal. This coupled with the $2.4 million CCHE grant will provide significant momentum for the renovation of the Theater.  Similar to the Apollo Theater in Harlem, the $17 million renovation of the Vision Theater will serve as an economic and cultural catalyst for the revitalization of Leimert Park Village." – Councilmember Bernard Parks

"It is imperative that this community gem re-opens in order to give us a place to highlight the remarkable cultural talent that exist in our community as well as help stimulate the Leimert Park business economy. I am glad that we were able to secure these funds but we will need support from everyone to ensure that the Vision Theater will be self sufficient and serve the community for years to come." --- Majority Leader Bass.

Along with the funds from the CCHE and the City, there is a campaign to raise additional funds to sustain the theater as well as educational programs like the Manchester Jr. Arts Center, which will provide hands-on training that will utilize the Vision Theater as the on-site laboratory for skill development in the art of stage production including. Programs will include stagecraft, computer application for the entertainment lighting industry, technical production, theater management, sound design, production planning and house and box office management.

According to a representative from the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, the goal is to return the Vision Theater, which is currently closed, to its former luster of a premiere cultural venue. It will showcase performing arts events, films produced by and featuring African Americans as well as serve as a facility for community lectures, assembly and exhibits. 

The $2.4 million awarded by the CCHE is the largest amount granted to any single project.  The City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs oversees the management of the City-owned theatre.  For more information on the Vision Theater, contact Ernest Dillihay at (213) 202-5500.