The Lompoc Theatre Project received a $6 million donation from Santa Barbara philanthropist Cheryl Goldberg that will advance the restoration of the historic theater.
The donation brings the $18.9 million Lompoc Theatre Centennial Renovation to its threshold of full funding. Cheryl Goldberg is a music educator and board member of Music Academy of the West.
Of the $6 million donation, $5 million will directly support the restoration and reopening of the theatre, while the remaining $1 million will establish The Cheryl Goldberg Santa Barbara Performing Arts Fund, which will be a “multi-year resource” for county based performing arts organizations to Lompoc for annual performances and community engagement.
“Cheryl Goldberg has changed the future of the Lompoc Theatre and our entire community,” Executive Director of the Lompoc Theatre Project Mark Herrier said in a press release.
“The performing arts fund she is creating will build a lasting bridge between North County and South County through the arts. We are profoundly grateful for her vision and her belief in what this theatre can become.”
In the same press release, Goldberg expressed her enthusiasm in restoring the Lompoc Theatre, stating that she knew she “wanted to be a part of making this theater happen.”
“It was going to cover so many bases as a performing arts center, and their plan for incorporating other Santa Barbara County arts organizations into their performance offerings seemed like a win-win collaboration for both the Lompoc and greater Santa Barbara County communities,” she said in the press release.
When the theater restoration is complete, it will include a 450-seat historic auditorium, education and rehearsal studios for local youth, “state-of-the-art” acoustics, lighting and theatrical technology, as well as the restored Land Office, which is one of California’s oldest surviving commercial wooden buildings.
The theatre is now currently under construction, with plans to open in Spring 2028. Beginning in early 2027, the theater will open as an 8-guest “intimate performance venue” while the renovation continues.
The Lompoc Theatre initially opened in 1927, featuring live concerts, films and community celebrations. It closed in 1991 and the Lompoc Theatre Project was formed in 2012 to restore the building.
Since the revival project began, it has been backed by notable Santa Barbara figures such as Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Brad Hall, as well as Lompoc organizations such as 19six Architects and the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians.
