Hawthorne Theatre

Walked into the bar and was told I can’t bring my drink into the venue cause it was 21+. Walked into the venue and they had a full service bar. WTF!!! Went out to smoke and was immediately x’ed by a bouncer. Really guys?! I won’t be back. Get on the same page.

it was hot, intimate, sounded good and parkway drive tore the place apart!
All the reviews complaining about the PA are unwarranted. The reviews concerning how hot it got are accurate but really the heat didn’t diminish the show at all, so that’s a non factor unless you’re already severely dehydrated I guess. Overall great experience in a small intimate venue.

I just went to an amazing concert at your venue. I had read some not so pleasing reviews so I was a bit apprehensive about my upcoming experience. The place, the bouncers to the bartender were all top notch. I am a Crystal Ballroom frequent, and I will definitely return. Thank you Hawthorne Theatre for a much needed delightful evening. Melanie Martinez is magnificent!

Came here to see Joey Cape and Walt Hamburger. Nice intimate venue, which I appreciate. The staff was courteous and quick.
Loved the set up for the smaller stage area. Ticket price was a bit high, but I’d definitely come back again for the right bands.

It was hot and stuffy, sound system needs an upgrade, parking sucked. The building is old and needs some serious TLC. Oh well I say… I was there to rock with my favorite band P.O.D. Still had a ROCKIN time! The venue was perfect to rock closely with the band (s).

It would be an awesome venue if whoever runs the sound wasn’t DEAF. Absolutely TERRIBLE sound. You can’t hear vocals at all. And ive been to this venue more times than i can count in hopes the sound tech would pull their head out of their butt. Nope! Never returning.

I have mixed feelings about my experience at Hawthorne. I’m glad I went because the band I went to see hardly ever plays in the US so there’s that. I learned a lot, though:
1. If you’re physically disabled and need a chair like I did, call ahead the day before or a couple hours before showtime and get the name of who you speak to. I neglected to do this and when I got there the stage manager was nowhere to be seen and all they could give me was a bar stool to sit on that didn’t give me the back support I need. If you call ahead you can say «I spoke to (person)…»
2. They post the lineup, and they allow reentry. So if the band you’re there to see doesn’t play for a while, go across the street to Fred Meyer and hang out. They’re open till 11.
3. There’s no air conditioning, so bring something to fan yourself with.
Because I didn’t prepare and was unfamiliar with the venue, I ended up having to leave early due to back pain and being too damn hot, but now I know for next time. The staff there were very friendly and respectful and I’d definitely return.

Went tonight for a Motley Crue and Poison tribute band concert. The 3 bands that played were great, but the guy running the mixer was an idiot. All 3 bands had to stop and yell at the guy. He was drinking before the show so was probably just too damn drunk to do his job. Please find another guy for that job, or you will start lose customers.

First time at this venue to support friend in the band of the night. The place is just fine for the bands and audience. I wouldn’t expect any more really. Saw the band on stage, the sound was good. Better than Dantes downtown!!!

Nice, cozy venue. The drink line moves quickly, and the bar at the front is a great place to hang out between bands.

A few weeks back I had the pleasure of seeing Machine Head rock the shit outta this club! Hawthorne theatre gets one star for being able to attract bands I wanna see!
Here is where this placed FAILED BIG TIME! After my pat down I was inside and that is when I met the guys who worked the door. I imagine prison being exactly like this, guards towering over you with their big bellies, smug expressions all while yelling directions to you. These guys were assholes, just plain mean. They obviously hate life and their jobs! I didn’t get a chance to buy a shirt at first because they were screaming to keep it moving the whole time.
I really hate the idea that they think it’s ok to treat people like this. You may get some killer bands I wanna see because of mike thrasher but I won’t be back.

I flew from LA to Portland just to see a band here (and to also visit a friend) so that’s how dedicated I was to hearing the music that I love. So my caveat is that my only experience here was based on this one concert (Dark Tranquility /​Insomnium) on 1÷24÷15 evening.
Plusses
–The line up if there are multiple performances that night are posted along the walls.
–Having a sectioned off bar area in the back. better if you were over 6 feet tall to see
–Hardly a line to get into the concert I wanted to see. This might’ve been because no one knew about these bands I went to see, or because the staff moved people quickly in, or because they have the line up posted so you can come in whenever the band you want to see starts playing
–No security to hold off fans from the front of the stage. So the guy next to me literally reached out to inconspicuously touch one of the guitarists’ guitar.
–Tix were cheap! These tix were about $ 20/​person, so I felt good enough to pay for my fiancé and his buddy to come hang out with me at the concert.
Negatives
–Does get crowded and the mosh pit is as ridiculous as any other I’ve ever seen
–Does get hot and everyone smelled like BO, didn’t feel like there was any A/​C
–Got so loud sometimes that you really couldn’t hear the music. BRING EAR PLUGS.
–Venue is small and there’s no seating (obviously hence the mosh pit). So get here early if the band you want to see is quite popular

Ahhh,…the Hawthorne. A place where you can see up and coming bands or those on their way out, at a reasonable price. The problem is, the sound usually sucks. Couple in virtually no parking (this is Hawthorne St after all) and a bathroom situation that frequently resembles a horror movie and it can really drag the evening down. Oh ya, and three months out of the year you will literally feel yourself melting as their is no A/​C and no air movement save for the effervescent waft of armpit and ass coming off of the guys moshing up front.
Is it the worst place to see a band? No, I have seen one good show there. But in general, when I hear that someone I want to see is coming to the Hawthorne, I have to do some real soul searching on how bad I really want to see the band.

The bouncer showed me complete and utter disrespect, along with the manager. I paid $ 5 to see a show, which was already over unbeknownst to me. Instead of courteously refunding my money, they decided to keep the money in an act of blatant dishonesty. The bouncer acted like it was his god-​given right to receive the unearned $ 5 bill… you could see the thieving glint in his eyes. The smug satisfaction he received from scamming me out of a service that I did not receive, well that was enough to convince me of the values this business stands for.
It takes some nerve to steal money from a would-​be customer — I can’t imagine the low-​level morals it takes to run that place. I would rather scoop up an errant drunk person’s spit and sip it like a fine wine than return there for any reason whatsoever.

Waited for an hour while listening to pandora ads. Also got a full TSA patdown from some fat hipsters.
Sadboys 2001

So I’ve figured out why this place stays open… it’s because many bands that play here have kids as fans, (the ones waiting in line out front) and they’re just so damn happy to go OUT that they don’t complain about the venue. Once they’ve been to a few places that have actual ventilation, clean bathrooms, polite bouncers, good lighting, and decent seating, they quit.
A band I want to see is coming here… and I’m actually NOT GOING all because of the venue. Even Dante’s is better than this hellhole of darkness.

So I’ve seen a lot of my favorite bands here and have always loved it. I’ve played here dozens of times as well. I like it, I really do, but I have to point out, the sound. Too. much… low end! Damn, so many times, I want to take over and EQ it. Just give me 10secs and you could enjoy the music better.
It’s cool you can be in the 21+ area and still see the band ok. Standing is mandatory, but c’mon. If your seeing a sweet band, why would you want to sit down anyway?

I got to play here with my band, When We Met. I loved to the big stage, we where a little small for it back then. As a patron I always like this venue just fine, it’s one of the few all ages spots in town. I had a great time when I saw The Dead Milkmen here!!!

I wouldn’t even give this dump one star. It’s small, hot and ugly inside and the sound system sucks. We came for a Filter show and were killing time outside before the show. I handed a tiny vaporizer to someone to hold onto for me. A fat, ugly bouncer with small-​penis syndrome saw it and told my friend to leave. He went and put it in his car and 15 minutes later, they would not allow him into the show that we paid $ 75 to see, and would not refund our $. We will go to small claims court to get our money back if we have to. It’s the principal of the thing, we were weren’t being rowdy or causing any problems for them, the bouncers & employees there are assholes
on a power trip. I will NEVER go back there again!

I love music, and I usually love people that are into music. But this place showed me the darker underbelly of music in SE Portland. But It can be hard to love anything in a steam bath that’s not steam at all. It’s sweat, it gets so hot that the sweat is EVERYWHERE, dripping from the ceilings, on the walls and floor… On top of that the bathrooms are itty bitty and there’s always a line for the bathroom THE MENS BATHROOM. Which is funny but that means having to zigzag through a line of aggravated sweaty men that just stepped out of a mosh pit because nature calls.
I Gotta say, wait till your band is playing at the roseland, At least they have chairs and a cooled area to sit cause that place was worse than a standing room only Turkish bathhouse *shudder*
lastly, if you think typical bartenders get tired of handling drunk people, think about workers handling drunk hot people (not hot in a good way). It was hell. A sweaty, hot, crowded hell.