Oakland Dream Theater

This is my first realized photo project since making MCV MCV a blog dedicated to photography. You can view it at mcvmcv.net, or read on for a short description.

Manchester United's stadium, Old Trafford, is commonly referred to as the "Theater of Dreams." It seems that any stadium could be called a "dream theater": in effect, fans go there to be entertained in some way by the possibility of winning.

The Oakland Coliseum is an entirely marginal stadium: it's on the outskirts of an overshadowed "Town" (to San Francisco's "City") and home to a team with a successful but definitely unglamorous history—the A's practically invented steroids. The building itself is a block of concrete which few will mourn for aesthetic reasons when it's eventually demolished. But even with relatively sparse crowds, it's an enjoyable place to watch baseball. The stadium is full of sun on weekend day games, the fans that do show up are fun to be around, and the advertising is refreshingly unintrusive. On a warm day, stretching one's legs out on abundant empty seats can be an almost meditative experience.

In the end, the 2008 season was not a particularly memorable one for the A's in sporting terms, but perhaps the low-key season on the field contributed to the relaxed feeling at the Coliseum that I hope to have captured in these photos.