A theater is a glorious thing, built to make audiences feel that they’ve escaped, with architectural splendor that conjures another time or place. And that’s certainly true of the Mayan, the 1927 theater in Downtown L.A. with an intricate facade and stage that look like an ancient Mayan temple.
In recent years, the theater had become a nightlife hub with live music, DJ nights and lucha libre matches—but it’s closing down in September, as first spotted by The Scenestar.
The venue itself has been around for 98 years, and this club-like iteration of the Mayan that most Angelenos now know has been under the same management for three and a half decades. The company announced on Instagram, “It is with heavy yet grateful hearts that we announce the Mayan will be closing its doors at the end of September, after 35 unforgettable years.” For anyone rooting for DTLA to continue as a nightlife destination, this is hard news.
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The theater is closing in part due to residual loss of income from the pandemic. Theater president Sammy Chao told the L.A. Times that the last five years have been “unrelenting” with the loss of business, rising inflation, changes in consumer habits, fires, political unrest and policies at city, state and federal levels that adversely affect small business owners.
The Mayan isn’t the only victim of this downturn. It’s tragic to say, but Downtown L.A. is undeniably in a slump right now. Just last week, three notable restaurants in the area announced their closures: Cabra, a rooftop Peruvian-inspired restaurant from chef Stephanie Izard; Shibumi, a Michelin-starred Japanese restaurant; and Cole’s, one of L.A.’s oldest restaurants (and purported originator of the French dip). Last year, the L.A. Live location of the Conga Room closed its doors, too, and the formerly 24-hour diner the Original Pantry Cafe shuttered earlier this year.
But just because the Mayan is closing doesn’t mean it will be torn down, in case that’s anyone’s fear. While the current leaseholder is letting go of the nightclub business, there’s no indication that the existing owners have sold the building. Further, the theater is an L.A. Historic-Cultural Monument, which means that if someone tries to tear it down, environmental reviews are triggered and the city’s Cultural Heritage Commission can object to and delay the demolition. That doesn’t necessarily prevent demolition, but tearing down such an iconic building would be unlikely.
You can easily spot the theater thanks to its beautiful neon blade sign reading “Mayan” and bas-relief faces of the god Huitzilopochtli. Inside, the lofty ceiling’s chandelier contains a replica of the Aztec calendar stone while colossal pre-Columbian figures flank the stage and the feathered snake Quetzalcoatl wends his way above what appear to be massive carved stone blocks but are really made of plaster. (That’s Hollywood magic!)
Besides the amazing building itself, the programming here was exceptional. The space hosted Lucha VaVoom (and its successor), a regular wrestling, comedy and burlesque show. Additionally, incredible bands performed there over the years, including Pixies, Daft Punk, Coldplay, Jack White, Muse, Sasha & Digweed, Tiësto, Paul Van Dyk, Panic! At The Disco, Maná, Marc Anthony, Los Tigres del Norte, Ramón Ayala and Alejandra Guzmán, according to one of the Instagram commenters.
Remember the romantic Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner 1992 film The Bodyguard? That was filmed here, as well as the goofy 1998 A Night at the Roxbury with comedic geniuses Will Ferrell, Molly Shannon, Jennifer Coolidge and Chris Kattan. The Netflix women’s wrestling show Glow was filmed here, too, along with plenty of other lesser-known films.
In an effort to create some last memories at the theater in its current incarnation, the Mayan invites everyone to come dance every Saturday night through September 13.