In 1997, 4 years before her English crossover, Colombian singer-songwriter Shakira performed her first show in the United States at the Pantages. The theatre has also occasionally hosted popular music concerts, including those of the bands Dream Theater, Foo Fighters and Mark Knopfler and Talking Heads' 1984 concert film "Stop Making Sense" was shot there. In December 2007, plans were revealed to complete the original design and floors, much due to the rejuvenation of the Hollywood area and the demand for office space. Completion of the 10 upper floors was halted due to the 1929 stock market crash during construction. The original plans for the Pantages were for a 12-story building: 2 floors dedicated to theater and 10 floors of office space. The theater underwent a $10-million restoration and upgrade in 2000. Situated on a prime location, the area's building and a rejuvenation boom has spread to Bob Hope Square with the addition of a new W Hotel and retail stores, tied closely to the Hollywood/Vine station. The theatre has recently presented large-scale Broadway musicals such as Disney's The Lion King, which ran at the theatre for over two years, and hosted the long-running Los Angeles production of the Broadway musical Wicked. Now operated by an arm of the Nederlander Organization, the Pantages is one of Los Angeles' leading venues for live theater (the five highest-grossing weeks in L.A.'s theatrical history were all shows at the Pantages). It was re-opened the following month with as a performance venue with Bubbling Brown Sugar, the first of the many road show productions that have since become its regular fare. Pacific Theatres took over management in 1965 and finally closed the Pantages as a movie theater in January, 1977. He moved his personal offices to the building's second floor and from 1949 through 1959 it hosted the Academy Award Ceremonies. Pantages sold the theatre in 1932 to Fox West Coast Theaters, and in 1949 Howard Hughes acquired it for his RKO Theatre Circuit. With the coming of talking pictures, even the little live entertainment was curtailed. During the Great Depression theaterowners found they could economize by operating mainly as a movie houses, with a little live entertainment was presented at the beginning of the bill. The Pantages Theatre Circuit was started for vaudeville, with "flickers" (movies) as just one spot on the bill when the technology became available. Marcus Priteca in an intricate Art Deco style. Opened on June 4, 1930, this was the last theatre constructed for the great entertainment czar Alexander Pantages. Pantages Theatre (aka RKO Pantages Theatre)
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