About the Stages

The Main Stage

The Main Stage (seating chart below) is located on the street level of the Gerding Theater at the Armory and seats 599, including 520 seats on the main level and 79 seats in the two-row balcony. The Main Stage is wheelchair accessible. With a fixed seating configuration, seating in the Main Stage is reserved at the time you purchase your subscription or single tickets.

The procenium opening is 35' wide and 18' high -- similar in size to most Broadway stages. The depth of the stage from the edge of the Orchestra Pit to the back wall is 46'6" and the depth of the Orchestra Pit is 27' below the floor of the stage.

Shaped in a comfortable "continental" style (with no center isles), the seating features generous leg room and great sightlines. The upholstery fabric utilizes recycled fibers.

The Main Stage is equipped with an inventory of 350 lights and has the ability to program 1,000 different lighting cues. The sound system is also state-of-the-art.

Main Stage Seating

Ellyn Bye Studio

The Ellyn Bye Studio is a "black box" theater and is located two floors below ground. It seats up to 200 people and has a flexible seating plan which may change from play to play. To find out the seating arrangement for a specific Ellyn Bye Studio production, contact the Box Office at 503-445-3700. The Ellyn Bye Studio is also wheelchair accessible.

Because the seating in the Ellyn Bye Studio is flexible, and changes configuration and capacity based on the specific production, your ticket reserves you a place for a specific performance, but not for a specific seat. To honor our season subscribers, who choose to purchase an entire season at once, there is a subscriber-only seating period when the house opens for the Ellyn Bye Studio, at one half hour prior to showtime. The subscriber-only seating period is generally 15 - 20 minutes long. At the end of that time, all ticket holders will have access to seating in the Studio.

With its intimate size and acoustics, we believe that all seats in the Studio are good! The advance seating period for subscribers is one way of saying “thank you for subscribing.”