Concept Unification 1-Stage

The Concept Unification 1-Stage, known commonly as the 'CU 1-Stage', is a stage setup found at three Chuck E. Cheese locations that had the Concept Unification Stage moved from a side wall or had to be moved due to the store expanding.

History

In September 2010 with the remodel of Whitehall, PA (1000 Lehigh Valley Mall), CEC Entertainment introduced a brand-new stage that would be introduced for stores with the Concept Unification Stage which had to be moved due to store expansion / remodel. This stage would then be installed at two other stores once in 2011 at Springfield, IL (2369 McArthur Ave) and lastly with Columbus, GA (3201 Macon Rd) in late 2011. Between the installation of Whitehall and Springfield the backdrop had minor backdrop design changes. Such as changing from night to daytime, changing the designs of various buildings and replacing some with trees, changing the scale of the imagery shown to be much smaller making the backdrop seem bigger. The Wink, Moon, Building, and Munch Jr. animatronics were also scrapped during this process. Pasqually's platform was removed as well. In July 2015, CEC Entertainment moved to its current offices installing a combination of the CU 1-Stage and Concept Unification Stage. It would reuse the CEC neon sign, TV top jukebox light, star, Munch's Make Believe Band sign, buildings, planters, valance and all the animatronics being put onto one stage to fit the downsized space. In spring 2016, Guatemala City, Guatemala (Blvd Liberación 6-31, Zona 9) closed down and relocated to a new area in Concepcion County later that year in November. The 3-Stage characters, the star and building props, and plus 3 record parody posters from the old store were brought over to the new location, and were installed in a one stage entity above the Coffee & Deserts station and Beverage Station. However, they were installed as non-functional on-display pieces. As of 2016, this is the latest CU 1-Stage setup to be installed in a location, and is the only one in-store to use original 3-Stage backdrops. As of now, they still remain. On April 23, 2023, the CU 1-Stage at Columbus, GA (3201 Macon Rd) would be removed during a 2.0 remodel, with the Whitehall location later being removed the same year on July 12th. On May 24, 2024 it was announced that the CU 1-Stage in Springfield, IL would be kept in-store throughout the 2.0 remodel and preserved as the company's official CU-1 Stage⁽¹⁾.

Nomenclature

Despite having 'Chuck E.'s Make Believe Band' written on the valence, the CEC community created a name for this stage: the 'CU 1-Stage'. In 2011, the community referred to this stage as 'Chuck E.'s Make Believe Band'; the new name put directly above the characters that was formerly 'Munch's Make Believe Band'.⁽²⁾⁽³⁾ The 'CU 1-Stage handle comes from when the YouTube user Biffer1995 frequented the Springfield, IL location. The stage was first referred to in the descriptions of some videos as 'The new CU stage with 3-bots on a 1 stage'⁽⁴⁾ then evolved into the 'CU 1-Stage', first seen in a video titled 'Chuck E Cheese CU 1 stage walk through'.⁽⁵⁾

Design:

The CU 1-Stage at Whitehall, PA featured the text 'Chuck E.'s Make Believe Band' on top and a backdrop featuring a cityscape and park at night with three flat-screen TVs in front of it. The backdrop features Chuck, Helen, Munch, Jasper & Pasqually at various positions around the banner. Helen & Munch bouncing on the ground, Chucks face being on top of a building, Jasper flying around on an airplane, and Pasqually on a billboard for his pizza. On the floor towards the backdrop was a small black wall which would hide the floor floods, with the ceiling floods and Jasper’s guitar spotlight hidden behind the 'Chuck E.'s Make Believe Band' valance. The differences between Whitehall, PA, Springfield, IL and Columbus, GA is the backdrop was redone slightly with the night setting at Whitehall becoming day at Springfield and Columbus and all the assets being shuffled around to fit better with the size of the stage. Whitehall also kept the Wink’s spotlight, and had it angled at the valance. Concepcion County's CU 1-Stage, although non-functional, uses backdrops from the 3-Stage, albeit in different positions and without the Wink.

Current CU 1-Stages

Place	Installed	Notes.
Springfield, IL (2369 McArthur Ave)	Early 2011	Operational, in decent shape, still has Beach Bear's guitar, original CU Drum front, and rare 'Cool Chuck' outfit. Second CU 1-Stage installed. Last CU 1-Stage in a CEC location. One of 2 sets of CEI animatronic shows preserved in CEC locations. One of five animatronic stages to remain intact, those being the Northridge, CA 2-Stage, Nanuet, NY Studio C Beta, Charlotte, NC 3-Stage, and Hicksville, NY 1-Stage.
Chuck E. Cheese's Corporate Office	July 2015	Operational, in great condition. Originally used for programming new shows at Chuck E. Cheese's Corporate Office until mid 2023. Converted from an original 3-Stage instead of using the Chuck E.'s Make Believe Band design. Oldest Concept Unification show in existence currently, being converted in 1990 at the Showbiz Pizza Time Corporate Office as a 3-Stage.
Concepcion County, Guatemala	November 2016	Non-operational, on display only as a static stage. Latest time a set of CU animatronics was installed in a new Chuck E. Cheese's location, long after Concept Unification was completed. Above the Coffee & Deserts station and Beverage Station. Animatronics came from Guatemala City, Guatemala (Blvd Liberación 6-31, Zona 9), which in turn came from Guatemala City, Guatemala (Ave La Reforma 7-62, Zona 9), and before that, the Showbiz Pizza Place at Terre Haute, IN (3820 S US Hwy 41).

Former CU 1-Stages

Place	Installed	Notes.
Whitehall, PA (1000 Lehigh Valley Mall)	September 2010	Was in decent shape, had Chuck's platform, original backdrop was been covered by a giant rainbow banner (Rainbow banner removed in Early 2023). Jasper sat on a glittery silver can. First CU 1-Stage installed. Removed July 12, 2023.
Columbus, GA (3201 Macon Rd)	Late 2011	Was in very poor condition. Pasqually’s drum set featured Rolfe’s cymbal in addition to the standard crash cymbal. Jasper sat on a black can. The legs on Munch’s keyboard were covered in glitter. Last CU 1-Stage installed. Removed April 23, 2023.