94-Year-Old Amador Valley Theater Demolished

PLEASANTON, CA — When Amador Valley High School students return to school Thursday, they will see a substantial part of the campus missing.

In January 2025, the PUSD board voted to approve the demolition of the Amador Valley High School theater, which was built in 1932. A city-commissioned study compared the costs of rehabilitating and replacing the theater, and determined that “the extensive upgrades required, along with the associated risks, made replacement the more responsible long-term investment,” the school district said in a statement.

According to a report in The Independent, the theater was not fully usable before demolition, and students were staging productions at the Firehouse Arts Center.

The theater will be replaced by a new theater, which will be part of a broader $95.8 million Amador Valley Performing Arts and Athletic Facilities Project. The project also includes a new competition gym, the modernization of the locker rooms and other existing facilities, and improvements to the pool. Demolition and debris removal will continue into the school year, with construction of the new gym and performing arts center expected to proceed simultaneously, a contractor told Pleasanton Weekly.

Construction is underway and expected to be completed in the second half of 2028, the district said. The project is funded primarily through a $395 million Measure I facilities bond approved by Pleasanton voters in 2022, according to the district.

The new theater will include a commemorative display to honor the old theater’s importance to generations of PUSD students, staff, and families.

“Our goal is to honor the theater’s legacy while making responsible use of bond funds to create an accessible, first-class performance venue that expands opportunities for drama, music and classroom instruction for generations to come,” PUSD Superintendent Maurice Ghysels said in a statement.