COSTA MESA : Applications Open to Manage Theater

Those interested in becoming the new managers of the Pacific Amphitheatre have until Tuesday to submit applications at the administrative office at the Orange County Fair and Exhibition Center.

Fair officials are looking for a full-time, on-site facility manager to book performances that would not bother neighbors with excessive noise, said Jill Lloyd, a fair spokeswoman.

The applicant selected would be expected to make suggestions on capital improvements and how the facility should be run, Lloyd said.

Bookings would include a mix of symphonic orchestras, ballet, opera and Broadway musicals and contemporary concerts or comedy, Lloyd said.

Applications are still available at the administrative office, 88 Fair Drive in Costa Mesa, but they are fairly lengthy, she said.

The 18,500-seat amphitheater, bought back from the Los Angeles-based Nederlander Organization by the Orange County Fair in April, 1993, for $12.5 million, is ready to negotiate a three-year contract with three five-year options, Lloyd said. Nederlander has been the venue’s most recent manager.

It cost $11 million to build the amphitheater, which first opened in July, 1983.