The 1-Stage is a full character stage setup produced and installed in Chuck E. Cheese's restaurants from 1992-1998. It is the third and final Cyberamic show to feature Munch's Make Believe Band before the Studio C conversion.
History
Development
The 1-Stage was possibly conceptualized after the 2-Stage's debut as a smaller version of it to not take up too much of the showroom, and to be cheaper and faster to install in a lot of stores.
General Appearance
The 1-Stage debuted in 1992 at Waldorf, Maryland. As the name implies, the characters share 1 floor space to have the stage smaller. The rooftop setting and buildings are more vibrant compared to the 2 and 3-Stages, with more color and design than just grey and rectangles. Along with those, two brick walls were placed behind Chuck E. and Pasqually. Chuck's side has the fiber optic sign in black, and a red rope light replacing the 2-Stage star. Pasqually's side has the graffiti on the wall saying "Pasqually's Amateur Hour Live" instead of just "Pasqually's Amateur Hour". The "Munch's Make Believe Band Sign" which is Pink on this stage, hangs above Pasqually's brick wall. Although, Durham, North Carolina moved the Munch's Make Believe Band Sign Where the CRT used to be and repainted their sign purple. Interestingly, some locations had Munch in front of a TV with the showtape footage playing behind him instead of the MMBB Sign, (although, some locations have the band sign there), and Jasper sitting on a unique amplifier. Finally, instead of a curtain valence, there is a wall piece. This design was later installed at the restaurants in Columbus, Ohio; and Lancaster, California (the former being gutted, and the latter now closed).
Second Prototype
Another 1-Stage prototype was installed in 1993 at Irving Texas. It looks more like the final 1-Stage, but with a few major differences. A Singing Flower was in-between Helen and Munch, Chuck E.'s tube next to his fiber optic sign was a red hanging light, and the band wore costumes and was nicknamed Munch's Party-time Band. Helen wore a roller-skating suit with yellow hair, Mr. Munch wore a tie, Jasper wore punk rock pants, and Pasqually wore a baseball suit. Later, the location was a 1-Stage with a Rain curtain blocking the turntable.
The '1/2 Stage or The 1 Stage With 2 Stage Props"
Before the finalized 1-Stage was created, a version was made using spare 2-Stage backgrounds, that fans have dubbed as the 1/2 Stage, as it was a 2-Stage without the fiber-optic sign and TV. The last location to have this stage is Mall Plaza Oeste, Chile (albeit with the star and Pasqually sign missing), as all other Locations that had this stage either closed down or got the 2.0 remodel.
The Mini-Unit 1-Stage
The mini-unit one stage is a now unique variant of the 1-stage put into smaller Chuck E. Cheese's locations, the main difference being the stage is smaller and more compact, with the characters closer together, and an additional difference is that these stages do not have the traditional curtain valence. The 1-Stages in Durham, North Carolina, El Paso "Sunland", Texas, Columbus “Soldano”, Ohio, Lancaster, California, and Waldorf, Maryland were all examples of these, with the Durham being the last of these to still have their stage as of August 2023. As El Paso Would Relocate the Stage during the 2011 Remodel.
Finalized version
When the finalized 1-Stage debuted, a few changes were made: Pasqually's "Amateur Hour Live" Graffiti was removed after the San Diego (Sports Arena) stage was installed[1], a curtain valence was installed, and the speaker Jasper sat on was redesigned. Shortly afterwards a version only installed in most stores during mid 1993 had the Fiber optic sign changed to look more like the 2-Stage version, however CEC with back to the black one in late 1993; the 1-Stage also became the default stage at this point. 1994 Saw the addition of lift curtains for the first time, and the Turntable. The Turntable was used to hide the animatronic Chuck E. so kids wouldn't be confused for due to Chuck not having his own curtains. Though it would start to be disabled in 2005 along with the curtains due to orders from CEC Entertainment to save money. Although, the last location to have a working Turntable was the Pearl City, Hawaii Location, but in the mid to late 2010s, the Chuck E. animatronic was permanently put toward the backstage room due to its poor condition, The Turntable was also disabled and a flat screen TV was put on it and they also repainted over it. They also removed the Rain Curtain And put the Chuck E. Cheese Neon Sign In between Jasper and Pasqually. As of August 2023, they still have the 1-Stage, although it's in very poor condition.
1-Stages would continue to be installed in new stores up until July 20, 1998 when the last 1-Stage store opened in Mentor, Ohio. Afterwards, it was replaced by Studio C, at the Canton Ohio location days later. However, one 1-Stage store opened in January 2011 in Santiago (Plaza Oeste), Chile, although theirs came from a store, Santiago (Mall Plaza Vespucio), Chile, that had a 2-Stage and had closed 11 years prior (Mall Plaza Vespucio opened in 1996 and closed in 2000 with a 2-Stage and converted their 2-Stage to a 1-Stage for Plaza Oeste's opening). Pico Rivera, California also converted their 2-Stage into a 1-Stage during the 2011 remodel, along with National City California converting theirs in December 2012 during an expansion. Citrus Heights, California received 1-Stage pieces from the Rohnert Park, California store, which replaced the 1-Stage with a Circles of Light in 2015. Citrus Heights still uses their old Road Stage platform as the stage base, while Rohnert Park still has their Circles of Light Stage.
From around 60 1-Stages during 2015; As of March 2024, 12 1-Stages remain in operation in the U.S. and 1 Chile, making 13 1-Stages altogether.[2]
Trivia
- This was the last stage to feature two things:
- The last new stage to feature five characters until the Cyberamic 3-Stage and CU 1-Stage.
- The last new stage to date to feature Cyberamics.
- Due to its simple and small design, it's currently the most common MMBB Stage.
- One of the buildings at the former Waldorf, Maryland 1-Stage featured the Coca-Cola logo.
- The 1-Stage appeared in the Nintendo DS version of Chuck E. Cheese's Party Games, as part of the "Rhythm Revue" minigame.
- A unique 1-Stage was Present at the Staten Island, NY location. It had a very different background and stage design, among other things.
Gallery
References
|
|---|
| Stages |
| Current Main Stages |
| 1-Stage - 2-Stage - 3-Stage - Road Stage - Studio C Alpha - Studio C Beta - Small-Town Studio C - Circles of Light - Chuck E. Live Stage |
| Current Test Stages |
| 1/2-Stage - Studio C Gamma - Mini Studio C (1997) - CU 1-Stage - 1/3-Stage - Circles of Light Live Stage - Studio C 3-Stage |
| Current Retro Stages |
| 2-Stage Live Stage |
| Retired Stages |
| Main: The Shelf - The Cyberamic Shelf - Balcony Stage - Rocker Stage - C-Stage |
| Test/one-offs: Family Album - Hot Fudge - Concept Unification Prototype Stage - Playroom 3-Stage - The Awesome Adventure Machine - Cyberamic 3-Stage - Studio C Prototype - Single-Screen Studio C 2000 - Studio C Alpha/Prototype Mix - Small-Town Studio C Prototype - CU 2-Stage - Studio C Beta/Cappa Mix - Star Stage - Galaxy Stage - Chuck E. Live Stage Prototype |