L.A. Theatre Works has been awarded a capital improvement grant by the Perenchio Foundation to give a new roof to the building it shares with Beyond Baroque at 681 Venice Boulevard. The historic building, now owned by the City of Los Angeles, originally served as a combination city hall and fire station for what was, at the time of its construction in 1906, the newly established City of Venice. Designed by famed turn-of-the-century Los Angeles architects W.S. Garrett and B.B. Bixby in the Spanish Mission style, the building features a tower and a cross-gabled tile roof, the latter of which is the target of the upcoming renovation. The location was chosen by the Ocean Park Board of Trustees in the wake of a power struggle with land developer Abbot Kinney, and was referred to as the “imperial palace at Tokio” because of its significant distance from the commercial district.

L.A. Theatre Works, the world’s foremost producer of audio theater, has been based in the building since 1979, five years after the company’s founding by producing artistic director Susan Albert Loewenberg.

“We are so thankful to the Perenchio Foundation for making it possible to preserve the integrity of this historic building, and for giving L.A. Theatre Works and Beyond Baroque a sturdy ‘roof over our heads,’” says Loewenberg.

“The organizations receiving these grants provide access to the arts for their communities, enriching the lives of those they serve and strengthening the LA region as a whole,” says Perenchio Foundation executive director Stephania Ramirez. “We hope that — with funding for facilities improvements, equipment, and technology — these essential arts organizations are empowered to continue building the infrastructure for a long-term future.”

L.A. Theatre Works stands apart in its approach to making great theater widely accessible and affordable, bringing plays into homes and classrooms of millions of theater lovers, teachers and students each year. The company’s syndicated audio theater series broadcasts weekly on public radio stations across the U.S. (locally, in Southern California, on KPFK 90.7 FM); can be downloaded as a podcast via iTunes, NPR One, or wherever you get your podcasts; and can be streamed on demand at latw.org. The L.A. Theatre Works catalog of nearl 600 recorded plays is the largest archive of its kind in the world. Audiofile magazine calls L.A. Theatre Works productions “the gold standard for fine audio theater recordings.”

The Perenchio Foundation is a private foundation established by the late A. Jerrold “Jerry” Perenchio. The Perenchio Foundation believes that arts play an essential role in building more equitable, culturally vibrant, and inclusive communities, and is guided by a commitment to create a positive, lasting impact in the Los Angeles region through the arts.

Learn more about L.A. Theatre Works at latw.org

Learn more at perenchiofoundation.org