Shoreline Amphitheatre
"Shoreline" | |
 Shoreline Amphitheatre as seen from ground level | |
 Interactive map of Shoreline Amphitheatre | |
| Address | One Amphitheatre Parkway |
|---|---|
| Location | Mountain View, California |
| Coordinates | 37°25′36″N 122°04′51″W / 37.426778°N 122.080733°W |
| Owner | City of Mountain View |
| Operator | Live Nation |
Seating type | reserved, lawn |
| Capacity | 22,500 |
| Type | Outdoor amphitheatre |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1986 |
| Website | |
| www.livenation.com | |
Shoreline Amphitheatre is an outdoor amphitheater located in Mountain View, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The venue has a capacity of 22,500, with 6,500 reserved seats and 16,000 general admission on the lawn. When the parking lot is utilized for festival stages, the total capacity of the venue can reach 30,000. The venue has hosted popular music festivals such as Lollapalooza and Ozzfest, and also developer conferences such as the Google I/O.
History
[edit]The amphitheatre was built in 1985–1986 by the city of Mountain View, in cooperation with local promoter Bill Graham, as part of the Shoreline Park project. Graham designed the amphitheatre to resemble The Grateful Dead's "steal your face" logo when seen from overhead.[1]
The premiere season was during the summer of 1986. It was planned to open with a concert by The Grateful Dead, but they cancelled due to Jerry Garcia's ill health. The first performance at the amphitheater was comedienne Roseanne Barr,[2] opening for Julio Iglesias on June 29, 1986.[3]
The Grateful Dead played their first concert at Shoreline in early October 1987, and played another thirty-eight times; with their final appearance on June 4, 1995.[4]. Jerry Garcia played a further three shows as part of the Jerry Garcia Band.
On February 2, 1998, a major El Niño storm caused a power outage that disabled the pumps that normally drain rainfall from the amphitheater. Combined with torrential rains, this caused water to fill the bottom of the amphitheater bowl to a depth of more than 15 feet, ruining the stage and much of the backstage infrastructure and causing $2.5 million in damage. The damage was repaired by May 17 when the season's opening concert took place.[5]
The amphitheatre was the site of two homicides. In 2015, a man was fatally shot backstage during a Wiz Khalifa concert.[6] In 2022, a man died as a result of a fistfight involving the Hells Angels during a Chris Stapleton concert.[7]
Until his death in 2019, the final concert at Shoreline was usually an Eddie Money concert in late September, as the Shoreline shows represented his homecoming concert.[citation needed]
Built on a landfill
[edit]In its opening year, a fan attending a Steve Winwood concert flicked a cigarette lighter and ignited methane that had been leaking from a landfill beneath the theater. Several small fires were reported that season. After those incidents, the city of Mountain View commissioned methane testing studies to define the location of methane vapors emanating from the soil within the amphitheater.[8] These tests were used in developing a design for improved methane monitoring and more efficient methane extraction to ensure the amphitheater became safe as an outdoor venue. Ultimately, the lawn was removed, a gas barrier and methane removal equipment were installed, and then the lawn was re-installed.
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ↑ Vaziri, Aidin (May 27, 2011). "25 years, 25 fabulous Shoreline Amphitheatre facts". SFGate. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
- ↑ "Shoreline Amphitheater". CrawlSF. Retrieved November 6, 2025.
- ↑ "The Best Amphitheaters in America". Rolling Stone. June 20, 2013. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
- ↑ "Grateful Dead Venues: Shoreline Amphitheatre". Retrieved February 23, 2026.
- ↑ Selvin, Joel (April 17, 1998). "Repairs almost done after El Nino fills up Mountain View amphitheater". SFGATE. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved July 28, 2026.
- ↑ Nelson, Katie (February 3, 2015). "Police release sketch of suspect in August killing at Shoreline Amphitheatre". East Bay Times. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
- ↑ Martin, Malea. "Police raid SF Hell's Angels club, arrest five after man killed at Shoreline Amphitheatre show in June". www.mv-voice.com. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
- ↑ Methane testing in the vicinity of landfill environs, EMI prepared for the City of Mountain View, Ca., 1986-87
- Tourist attractions in Silicon Valley
- Music venues completed in 1986
- Amphitheaters in California
- Culture in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Buildings and structures in Mountain View, California
- Music venues in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Theatres in California
- Tourist attractions in Santa Clara County, California
- 1986 establishments in California