Pacific Amphitheatre

The Pacific Amphitheatre is an amphitheatre in Costa Mesa, Orange County, California. The amphitheatre is located on the grounds of the OC Fair & Event Center. It opened in July 1983 on the site of the model railroad building of the fairgrounds, with Barry Manilow as the first performer.

The fairgrounds are surrounded by dense residential developments, and the amphitheatre was the focus of numerous noise complaints from local residents, prior to being closed in the early 1990s.

After almost a decade, it was reopened in 2003, in conjunction with the annual Orange County Fair. As part of an agreement with local residents, concerts are only held concurrently with the fair.

Since its reopening, the venue rarely uses the "lawn" area, effectively reducing seating capacity from approximately 18,000 to 8,500.

In addition to concerts, the location is the site of commencement for nearby Orange Coast College.

The venue hosted the final concert of Marvin Gaye before his untimely death.

Costa Mesa, California

Costa Mesa is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 109,960 at the 2010 United States Census. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to a primarily suburban and edge city with an economy based on retail, commerce, and light manufacturing.

History

Members of the Gabrieleño/Tongva and Juaneño/Luiseño nations long inhabited the area. After the 1769 expedition of Gaspar de Portolà, a Spanish expedition led by Junípero Serra named the area Vallejo de Santa Ana (Valley of Saint Anne). On November 1, 1776, Mission San Juan Capistrano became the area's first permanent European settlement in Alta California, New Spain.

In 1801, the Spanish Empire granted 62,500 acres (253 km²) to Jose Antonio Yorba, which he named Rancho San Antonio. Yorba's great rancho included the lands where the communities of Olive, Orange, Villa Park, Santa Ana, Tustin, Costa Mesa and Newport Beach stand today.

After the Mexican-American war, California became part of the United States and American settlers arrived in this area and formed the town of Fairview in the 1880s near the modern intersection of Harbor Boulevard and Adams Avenue. An 1889 flood wiped out the railroad serving the community, however, and it shriveled.

The Who

The Who are an English rock band that formed in 1964. Their classic line-up consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered one of the most influential rock bands of the 20th century, selling over 100 million records worldwide and establishing their reputation equally on live shows and studio work.

The Who developed from an earlier group, the Detours, and established themselves as part of the pop art and mod movements, featuring auto-destructive art by destroying guitars and drums on stage. Their first single as the Who, "I Can't Explain", reached the UK top ten, followed by a string of singles including "My Generation", "Substitute" and "Happy Jack". In 1967, they performed at the Monterey Pop Festival and released the US top ten single "I Can See for Miles", while touring extensively. The group's fourth album, 1969's rock opera Tommy, included the single "Pinball Wizard" and was a critical and commercial success. Live appearances at Woodstock and the Isle of Wight Festival, along with the live album Live at Leeds, cemented their reputation as a respected rock act. With their success came increased pressure on lead songwriter and visionary Townshend, and the follow-up to Tommy, Lifehouse, was abandoned. Songs from the project made up 1971's Who's Next, which included the hit "Won't Get Fooled Again". The group released the album Quadrophenia in 1973 as a celebration of their mod roots, and oversaw the film adaptation of Tommy in 1975. They continued to tour to large audiences before semi-retiring from live performances at the end of 1976. The release of Who Are You in 1978 was overshadowed by the death of Moon shortly after.

Mesa, California

Mesa is a census-designated place (CDP) in Inyo County, California, United States. The population was 251 at the 2010 census, up from 214 at the 2000 census.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 3.7 square miles (9.6 km²), of which, 3.5 square miles (9.1 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.52 km²) of it (4.17%) is water.

Demographics

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Mesa had a population of 251. The population density was 68.7 people per square mile (26.5/km²). The racial makeup of Mesa was 220 (87.6%) White, 0 (0.0%) African American, 10 (4.0%) Native American, 3 (1.2%) Asian, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 14 (5.6%) from other races, and 4 (1.6%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 26 persons (10.4%).

The Census reported that 251 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 104 households, out of which 21 (20.2%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 75 (72.1%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 2 (1.9%) had a female householder with no husband present, 5 (4.8%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 5 (4.8%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 2 (1.9%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 14 households (13.5%) were made up of individuals and 6 (5.8%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41. There were 82 families (78.8% of all households); the average family size was 2.62.

Amphitheatre

An amphitheatre or amphitheater /ˈæmfᵻˌθiːətər/ is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ἀμφιθέατρον (amphitheatron), from ἀμφί (amphi), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and θέατρον (théātron), meaning "place for viewing".

Ancient Roman amphitheatres were oval or circular in plan, with seating tiers that surrounded the central performance area, like a modern open-air stadium. In contrast both ancient Greek and ancient Roman theatres were built in a semicircle, with tiered seating rising on one side of the performance area. In modern usage, "amphitheater" is sometimes used to describe theatre-style stages with spectator seating on only one side, theatres in the round, and stadiums. Natural formations of similar shape are sometimes known as natural amphitheatres.

Roman amphitheatres

Ancient Roman amphitheatres were major public venues, circular or oval in plan, with perimeter seating tiers. They were used for events such as gladiator combats, chariot races, venationes (animal hunts) and executions. About 230 Roman amphitheatres have been found across the area of the Roman Empire. Their typical shape, functions and name distinguish them from Roman theatres, which are more or less semicircular in shape; from the circuses (akin to hippodromes) whose much longer circuits were designed mainly for horse or chariot racing events; and from the smaller stadia, which were primarily designed for athletics and footraces.