A 112-year-old movie theater has turned into one of SF's favorite rock venues

"While her bandmate takes a keyboard solo, Micah Morris lowers her microphone and sways to the music. Directly behind her, a 20-foot screen cycles through psychedelic imagery: clips of Jupiter and mandalas, all overlaid with flashes of color and fuzz. As the singer moves, she casts a small shadow, a dark mark over the swirls of color. Down below in the theater's seats, a small crowd listens attentively. Three friends silently pass a large bag of popcorn, and in the dark, greased paper catches the projector's faint glow. A man across the aisle sips a Fort Point."

"Since reopening a few years ago, the 4 Star Theater has enjoyed a double life as one of San Francisco's coolest concert venues. Down the street at Neck of the Woods, fans mosh to their favorite local bands, but here, they sit in their chairs, munch quietly on concessions and watch the action unfold. It's the type of behavior you'd expect from a crowd at the symphony, if you swapped the tuxedos for T-shirts with popcorn butter grease stains."

"The 4 Star hosts anywhere from 5 to 15 concerts per month, in between screenings of "Before Sunrise" and horror films on VHS. Among the 4 Star's notable guests are pro skateboarder-turned-genre bender Tommy Guerrero, 61-year-old rock band Flamin' Groovies and electronic music pioneer Suzanne Ciani. When the indie band known as the Red, Pinks & Purples played at the 4 Star, Glenn Donaldson, the singer, rolled his equipment in on a skateboard."

The 4 Star Theater in San Francisco's Outer Richmond functions as both a 112-year-old movie house and a modern concert venue. The venue supplements slow alcohol margins by selling popcorn, hot dogs and other concessions, and screens films on a 35mm projector between shows. Audiences sit in theater chairs and watch eclectic live performances, creating a quieter, seated concert atmosphere distinct from nearby mosh-friendly venues. The theater programs 5 to 15 concerts monthly alongside film screenings, hosting diverse acts from skateboarder-turned-musician Tommy Guerrero to electronic pioneer Suzanne Ciani and the Flamin' Groovies.

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