Dinkelspiel Auditorium

It’s not a gorgeous event space, but it’s conveniently located on campus right by Tresidder Union. A lot of Stanford’s large-​scale events are held here, and the acoustics are good, the sightlines are solid, and the seats are comfortable. It’s where Hillel has their Reform/​Reconstructionist High Holiday services each year, and it works fine for that.

Came here to see a jazz concert featuring Luciana Souza: Brazilian Duos with Romero Lubambo after getting free tickets from Unilocal.Nice intimate theater, decent seats and lighting, but they were missing the A/​C so it did feel a little stuffy.

They need air conditioning! I’ve been here for a few concerts now and while I’d say the acoustics and lighting are alright, the temperature can be sweltering on a warm summer evening, even with a less than capacity crowd. Also, their bathrooms leave much to be desired (too small, too few stalls).
I think the best productions to see here are for small groups. I saw a piano performance, a duo of singer and guitar, and an a capella performance. The a capella was delightful, but the acoustics were a bit muffled/​overwhelming at times with so many voices.

Mediocre lighting. Medium-​sized stage. Good dressing rooms.
It’s really convenient that there are a lot of bike racks around this auditorium.
It is a nightmare trying to book Dinkelspiel for performances. It tooks months for our group, Kayumanggi, to confirm our reservation. We would often try to call/​visit the booking office and the person in charge would either be away from the desk or would not return our calls. Over-​priced as well (cost us about $ 3,300 for 1 day) for the hassle they gave us.

I have a love-​hate relationship with this auditorium. Overall, it’s not as great of a theatrical venue as Memorial Auditorium, also on the Stanford campus. The acoustics are… challenging. Coming in as an outside lighting designer is… not thrilling. Even so, there is a certain charm to this place — both from a backstage/​onstage perspective, and from an audience perspective. There are 700 seats, a full orchestra pit, a large light loft (though with few lights), and a fun backstage. Please note that restroom availability is minimal for the size of the auditorium, so one should not down a Big Gulp just before seeing a production here.
This is a good venue for student productions, simply because its quirks make the students work just a little harder. (By that token, it is also a good place to see student productions that have had a lot of blood, sweat, and tears go into them!)
Just remember — the front row isn’t always the best seat in the house due to odd acoustics.