Few Glitches Mar Torrance Art Center’s Big Night : Culture: Gala opening of sparkling $13-million complex draws raves from theatergoers.

The reviews were coming in by intermission, and they were good.

“Fantastic,” said one theatergoer.

“Torrance is so lucky to have this,” said another.

It was undeniably the big arts event of the season in Torrance. After 10 years of planning, the city’s $13-million Cultural Arts Center was at last ready for visitors Friday night.

And in a scene that was decidedly out of character for low-key, conservative Torrance, about 500 people--mostly area residents--donned black tie and glittering evening gowns and paid $100 apiece to inspect the premises.

They were treated to a gala dinner and musical program. They tested the theater’s maroon velvet seats, strolled through the dimly lit Japanese garden and checked the restrooms’ towel supply. In the end, most appeared pleased with what they saw both on and off stage.

“I think we’ve got a winner here. A touch of class,” resident Pam O’Brien said.

As with most opening nights, this one was not without some glitches.

The performance of the much-debated headline performer, Susan Anton, was marred by sound equipment problems.

And the catered dinner of salmon roulade, grilled breast of chicken and Chardonnay ran late, pushing curtain time back 35 minutes.

But weary organizers admitted to some relief that the opening went as smoothly as it did.

“I’m very pleased. I think things went well,” said Robert L. Stewart, the center’s manager, who was bleary-eyed as he greeted well-wishers in the lobby after the show. He said he could not begin to estimate how many hours he worked last week, overseeing final preparations.

In the days leading up to the opening, construction workers had been swarming through the 64,000-square-foot complex, which consists of a 503-seat theater, open-air plaza and stage, community meeting hall, eight arts and dance studios, and a children’s art wing.

But Friday night, the saws and drills were stilled, replaced by the sounds of clinking wine glasses and the polite murmur of conversation. Newly planted trees twinkled with tiny white lights.

The most talked-about aspect of the opening had been singer Anton, a Beverly Hills resident whose choice as “special guest” for the premiere set off a furor in Torrance’s arts community. Some wanted a better-known artist; others argued for local talent. Her defenders retorted that Anton was doing the city a favor by charging a mere $3,000, all of which was earmarked for her musicians.

Anton was the last act of the “Bach to Broadway” two-hour premiere show, which opened with the Chamber Orchestra of the South Bay’s selections from Rossini and Bach and pianist Robert Haag performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20 in D Minor.

Then Anton strode onto the stage with an almost defiant air, strikingly tall in a form-fitting black dress, repeatedly brushing her blonde hair back with long fingers.

“It’s a pleasure to be here in Torrance. Honest,” she said wryly, evoking a ripple of laughter. And later she alluded directly to the controversy.

“This is really such a treat for me, because I heard a rumor that I’m not familiar with Torrance,” she said. But, she continued, she knows Torrance well because she visited relatives in the city as a child.

Her comments won approving applause.

But Anton’s later numbers were hampered by sound equipment problems. A sputtering noise could be heard during her last song, an emotional rendition of Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young.” And some people complained they could barely hear her at all.

The fault lay with a malfunctioning amplifier that was fixed by Saturday morning, Stewart said.

The flap over Anton notwithstanding, the opening weekend served as an occasion for setting aside political bickering and past disagreements.

Although Mobil Oil Corp. has been feuding with city officials over safety at the company’s huge Torrance refinery, the oil giant bought a full table with 10 seats at the gala dinner. Earlier last week, a city legal filing in the dispute sparked some angry comment from Mobil spokesman James Carbonetti, but he was peacefully dining amid other Mobil representatives Friday, just one table away from the city’s legal staff.

And City Councilman Bill Applegate eloquently praised the new center in a welcoming speech at Saturday morning dedication ceremonies, even though he once opposed the project.