Who We Are
The California Theater Consortium project is helmed by Korsa Musical Theater and led in partnership with steering committee arts organizations and other project partners.
About Korsa Musical Theater
Since its inception nearly two decades ago, Korsa Musical Theater (formerly known as Youth Musical Theater Company) has come to be known as the East Bay’s preeminent company whose sole mission is to train young artists in all the disciplines of musical theater, while also producing excellent productions. Many Korsa graduates have gone on to study music and theater at some of the best conservatories in the United States and abroad; many have made careers in the theater, both on stage and off. Korsa brings together the Bay Area’s most talented and dedicated young performers, musicians, and technical theater students (7th grade through University) with professional directors, designers, choreographers, and musicians. Korsa creates theater that takes on challenging and sophisticated musical and dramatic themes and that is always accompanied by a full, live orchestra.
Korsa has led the CTC project since its inception and, upon completion, will be the managing anchor tenant of the California Theater.
steering Comittee
CTC’s steering committee includes arts organizations from all over the Bay Area, helping to develop the community-building and advocacy work that advances the mission and vision of the consortium project. In future phases of the project, these organizations will be resident companies of the new theater space.
Berkeley Ballet Theater
BBT is dedicated to providing Bay Area dancers of all backgrounds and skill levels with a safe space to ignite curiosity, integrate creativity and physicality, and cultivate a passion for movement.
Berkeley Symphony
Berkeley Symphony presents unique and accessible musical experiences that resonate with the cultural demands of our time and place and create a greater sense of belonging.
West Edge Opera
West Edge Opera looks at opera through a new lens by presenting early and contemporary works and reimagining opera tradition to engage a diverse audience.
Young people’s symphony orchestra
YPSO is California’s oldest youth orchestra. Its mission is to encourage young people to become exemplary musicians, and young musicians to become exemplary people.
Project Partners
Gilbane Development Company is a prominent national developer well into the process of purchasing and planning the construction of a mixed-use building at the Kittredge Street site where the old California Theater stands. A key feature of this project is a reimagined California Theater, conceived in partnership with CTC.
Marcy Wong Donn Logan Architects–whose projects include the Berkeley Repertory Theater and the Freight & Salvage Music Preservation Center–have been retained by CTC as lead architects of the theater. They’ll work in collaboration with Gilbane’s building architects throughout the construction process.
Charcoalblue offers comprehensive consulting services in the planning and design of performing arts facilities of all types–including projects integrating theater production and AV systems.
Equity Community Builders is a consultancy firm that cultivates partnerships with property owners, nonprofit organizations, and public agencies to jointly develop their properties in ways that contribute to the vitality of Bay Area neighborhoods and strengthen our communities.
Meyer Sound has been in conversation with CTC founders since 2015. They’re excited by the project, in which their innovative Constellation acoustic system could help the California’s wide-ranging events–live music, theater, and dance; film; lectures; spoken word–come alive for every patron in the house.
Community Vision is a collaborative partner in social justice and financial equity initiatives, providing nonprofits, small businesses, and social enterprises with strategic investment and guidance, to deepen their work, scale their impact, and strengthen our communities.
Jennifer Boesing, Producing artistic Director | Korsa Musical Theater
Jennifer Boesing began working professionally as a singer/actor in Minneapolis at the age of nine. Before she graduated from high school, she had worked with multiple professional theaters and opera houses in Minneapolis. Boesing graduated from the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theater in New York City in 1993, and in 2002 she earned a master’s in music from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. In 2004, she assisted Korsa Musical Theater (formerly known as Youth Musical Theater Company) in forming a board and incorporating as a nonprofit. Over the following two decades, she has continued to lead the company towards becoming the renowned, year-round training company it is today. Ten years ago, Boesing began gathering like-minded companies to create an unofficial coalition to work on finding and building a performance space they could use year-round. This group would go on to advance the California Theater Consortium project.
Glen Epperson, co-project manager | California Theater Consortium
Glen Epperson started his professional theater career rebuilding the A.C.T. Playhouse in 1977, and then worked up and down the West Coast rebuilding performance spaces including the Old Globe – outdoor theater, Alaska Rep, Denver Center, Bonfils Theatre Denver (building a portable outdoor stage), and Berkeley Rep’s First year on Addison. Since retiring from theater, and over the last several decades, he has been working as a Principal at MBE Solutions, building event ticketing solutions and collaborating with other local community organizations, providing organizational and technical support.
our vision
The ultimate goal of the California Theater Consortium project is to transform the first and second floors of the planned high-rise housing structure slated for the Kittredge Street space in partnership with Gilbane Development Company, the building’s developer. Together, we hope to create the multi-purpose performing arts center the city has long needed.
Like so many locally owned movie theaters in the East Bay, the California Theater closed permanently in late 2021 after over 100 years in operation. Its legacy lives on in the hearts and minds of those who believe in the magic of community gathering places, where art and culture can be experienced collectively in the Downtown Berkeley Arts District we all know and love.
Berkeley is also home to a myriad of small performing arts companies that desperately need affordable, accessible, transit-friendly performance spaces in order to feature local talent, nurture young artists from all walks of life, and knit community together in ways that only the arts can. In 2022, the founders of Korsa Musical Theater brought together local arts organizations, civic leaders, and designers to form the California Theater Consortium (CTC). Together, we envision a future where the California Theater can live on and fulfill a new purpose.
Korsa hopes that the California Theater Consortium project will transform the California Theater into a brand-new performing arts home for theater, opera, music, dance, film, lecture series, spoken word, and more, making a dynamic fixture of a thriving arts district in the heart of Berkeley, all while preserving the California Theater’s iconic Art Deco marquee. We believe that the Berkeley arts ecosystem can thrive when we come together as a community to preserve the legacy of the arts in our city for many generations to come.
The California Theater facade
YMTC | Photo by Dave Weiland
Young People’s Symphony Orchestra
Photographer Credits: Dave Weiland (Korsa Musical Theater), Cory Weaver (West Edge Opera), Natalia Perez (Berkeley Ballet Theater), Louis Bryant (Berkeley Symphony), YPSO Photo Archive
what’s Next
What we've accomplished
Since first sitting down with Gilbane in the early part of 2022, we have been working through careful and diligent negotiations to ensure that a theater that meets our communities’ needs can fit into the planned building and that our plans are mutually beneficial. We have:
Worked closely with the consultancy of Equity Community Builders and garnered advice and support from many experts in the field of real-estate and non-profit collaborative projects, such as Community Arts Stabilization Trust and Community Vision
Worked closely for the past year with Marcy Wong of MWDL Architecture Firm, and they have finished complete drawings and designs for a state-of-the-art, 350-seat theater including plenty of dressing rooms, rehearsal spaces, and a luxurious lobby area, that will fit into the bottom 2 stories of the apartment high rise
Brought on nationally recognized theater consultants and engineers to consult on our vision of every aspect of the theater. These experts have helped us gather estimates so that we now have a clear scope of the total project cost
Supported Gilbane, and brought the support of the larger community, as they continue to move through approvals with the Landmark Commission, and the entitlements process with the City of Berkeley
Brought on a seasoned Fundraising Consultant to advise on the feasibility of our project and help us manage the early stages of what will become an ambitious capital campaign
Gathered data from over a dozen local performing arts organizations that are interested in renting the theater, once it is operational, and from that data:
Developed a projected operating budget that shows the theater fully operational year-round, and fiscally solvent
Gathered five core local arts organizations to partner with us at this first stage of fundraising, to serve on a steering committee, who will work together to build our pitch deck to take to our lead donors
Next steps
We are excited to have the opportunity to partner with the City of Berkeley on this project, making our ambitious goal even more achievable. Gilbane and Korsa have collaborated with key city officials on a proposed Tax Increment Financing plan that would enable Gilbane to finance the construction of the “cold shell” for the theater as part of their overall plan. Details and approvals for this plan are still pending, and all parties are working diligently to conduct due diligence for what is a complex but exciting series of contractual arrangements. The plan would position the City of Berkeley—who stands to gain significantly from this endeavor—as the hero of its own story and the final puzzle piece needed to make this dream a reality.
In this next phase of the project, we will be:
Diligently preparing all the necessary materials for our discussions with City Council and other City officials, as well as potential lead donors, which will include a compelling pitch deck, as well as digital and/or physical 3-D models of the theater.
Collaborating closely with our esteemed arts partners, we aim to engage with as many stakeholders as possible at the outset of our campaign.
Exploring naming rights opportunities within the community, seeking to establish meaningful connections and partnerships.
Our doors remain wide open to welcome any and all organizations expressing interest in sharing a home and its resources in Berkeley's vibrant downtown arts district, and joining in the effort to make this dream a reality.
Berkeley Ballet Theater