Est. 1964 · Jesuit Higher Education · Los Angeles Theater History
Loyola Marymount University was established in 1911 as part of the Society of Jesus network of Catholic universities. The Los Angeles campus occupies a bluff site in Westchester with views toward the Pacific, west of the 405 freeway.
The Strub Theatre, named for patron Charles H. Strub, is located in the Foley Building at the center of campus. The theatre operated as a conventional proscenium space for decades before the Theatre Arts Department identified the need for comprehensive renovation — both structural and technical.
The theatre was formally decommissioned in December 2022 in a ceremony that the campus newspaper described as emotionally significant for the department. Faculty members described the space as 'haunted' in a theatrical sense — meaning it carried the accumulated memory of productions and the people who made them.
Renovation work transformed the theatre into a flexible 170-seat venue capable of proscenium, thrust, and in-the-round configurations. The redesigned space reopened for productions in 2025.
Sources
- https://www.laloyolan.com/life_and_arts/whats_happening/strub-theatre-decommissioning-sparks-memories-and-excitement-for-theatre-arts-department/article_8db2cdc8-6aa9-51e1-912b-ecef982d55e4.html
- https://cfa.lmu.edu/programs/theatrearts/program/facilities/strubtheatre/
Apparitions
The most specific account attached to the Strub Theatre involves multiple independent observations from people in roles that require them to scan the house — actors mid-performance, stage managers conducting final sweeps before locking up.
In several accounts, individuals in these positions have noticed an older woman seated in the back rows of the house, apparently watching the stage. The posture is described as attentive rather than passive. When the sighting prompts someone to go check, the seat is empty.
The figure has not been identified with any specific historical person. The suggestion in campus lore that she may have been a former headmaster's or administrator's wife who had an affinity for the theater has not been corroborated by any documented historical record.
The phenomena has not been formally investigated. No EVP sessions or equipment-based documentation exists in publicly available sources. The account persists through departmental oral tradition — the kind of story passed between cast and crew members rather than published anywhere formal.
Notable Entities
Elderly Woman in Rear Seats
