San Francisco is home to a unique theater that has forgone the silver screen and focused solely on sound. Audium, a theater of sound, offers one-of-a-kind listening experiences in San Francisco. Audium features 49 seats, and each performance, or what the theater calls “sound sculptures,” is performed in complete darkness to create an immersive experience for listeners. The space is custom-built, surrounding listeners with dozens of speakers.
Audium began almost 70 years ago in 1956 when founders Stan Shaff & Doug McEachern began experimenting with sound. Audium started as a one-day show in 1962 at San Francisco State College, and by 1967, it had its first theater, hosting two shows a week with 44 speakers. From there, Audium continued to grow. In 1975, a new theater was opened after the sale of the original building, this time with an impressive 136 speakers. Starting in 2021, the theater began hosting residencies featuring multiple artists.
The theater is currently presenting 1000 Whispers From Our Future, an immersive auditory artwork created by Pat Mesiti-Miller. Mesiti-Miller was inspired by his years of work in prisons, asking participants, “What do you want in the new world?” From there, participants’ answers were combined with sound and experimental music to create the final piece.
“In a dream, a friend who passed away told me to ask people what they want in the new world- and to record their
answers as whispers,” says artist Mesiti-Miller. “That dream sparked this project. My intention with this work is to share and connect our visions of a better world, to discover new ways to build toward them together, and in doing so, realize we may be closer than we think.”
Artist Mesiti-Miller has worked in audio production and storytelling, and 1000 Whispers From Our Future is his first immersive piece. Mesiti-Miller is one of the artists in residence at the theater for 2025 through 2026, and you can expect other artists to showcase their work throughout the year.
The show debuted at Audium on December 4 and will run through January 3, 2026. Admission ranges from $20 to $30 and is available on most Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. You can find tickets here.