The Virginia Theatre in Champaign is one of the community’s most popular fixtures. From the various events listed on its busy schedule to the annual Ebertfest, there is no shortage of things to do and see there.
Among the entertaining possibilities presented there, The Virginia offers free tours to the public. I attended one of these tours recently. Disclaimers: My experience may not reflect your experience, good or bad. Also they would not let me record audio, so the information presented here is either paraphrased or taken from the notes I took in my terrible handwriting.
I arrived a little before ten where a few others waited outside the front doors. They did not let us in the building a moment before ten o’clock on the dot. A few more people filtered in and we got started with our guide, Mitch, who I think said he was the “front of house coordinator.” According to Mitch, he’s not the regular tour guide, but he did a fantastic job regardless and had an extensive knowledge of the building’s history and recent renovation.
First we walked to the east lobby, the area where merchandise is sold during concerts and other shows. This space is adjacent to a kitchen. Mitch explained how this area and a space on the opposite side of the building were separate storefronts, leased out to small businesses in order for the theater to have another source of income and were not originally connected to the interior of the theater.
Back in the main lobby he explained that, before the renovation, there was red carpeting everywhere and the walls were painted plain white. Now the key word to describe the Virginia’s interior would be “ornate.” The craftsmanship showcased within the building is spectacular. The carpets are now patterned and the painting on the walls is detailed and impressive.
File the next few sentences under Things I did not know up to this point. The theater’s lobby used to be separated from the main theater by half walls and curtains so the lobby could serve as an overflow section. There was not a concession stand in the lobby until the Virginia became more of a full-time movie theater. The Marx Brothers have performed there.
When the tour started, there were around eleven of us. When we moved up to the “mezzanine lobby” on the second floor, a late group of maybe sixty loud kids wearing shirts that read “Summer Arts Camp 2014” joined us with seven or eight young women escorting them. I learned that to wrangle a crowd of children, you can yell “Hey campers” and they’ll respond with “Hey what” and wait for your next command. “Listening ears on” also works. The Arts Campers complicated the phase of moving from one place to another a little, but it wasn’t a huge issue overall. I have to commend Mitch, who said he wasn’t prepared for this group and handled the surprise well.
In the mezzanine lobby, the word to describe the surroundings would again be “ornate.” The ceiling architecthure is particularly interesting.
The history lesson here was that, apparently, the theater’s main office was tucked away in what Mitch described as a closet-like room, although we didn’t get to look inside.
Mitch took questions throughout the tour.
Question in regards to the wall’s paint pattern: “What’s this camouflage?” Answer: “You mean the paint?”
Question in regards to gold-colored paint: “Is that real gold?” Answer: “No.”
Question in regards to highly detailed “honeycomb” ceiling pattern: “It looks like a beehive.” Answer: “Yes it does.” (OK — that one wasn’t a question.)
We moved on to the balcony, a place I usually characterize as not having enough leg room. The Virginia has a state-of-the-art digital projection system along with 35mm and 70mm projectors. Mitch also explained the story of some original canvas paintings uncovered on the ceiling during the theater’s renovation, how a worker was eating lunch and sort of discovered it by accident.
Things I did not know up to this point: The two small side balconies are simply decorative and were originally intended to be decorative. The Virginia’s organ is an original Wurlitzer, although restored. It’s the same kind of organ as the one in the Chicago Theatre.
Question in regards to the large circle on the theater ceiling: “What’s that circle?” Answer: “That’s called ‘the dome.’”
Question in regards to the theater’s age: “How old is the theater?” Answer: “It was built in 1921.”
Down on the theater’s main floor we walked up to the orchestra pit and surveyed the stage. Some chairs were being set up for a concert. We were told that part of the tour would be nixed for today. Although Mitch had earlier explained that the paint was not gold, there is actually gold leaf in some of the detailing in the main theater. By the way, “the house” seems to be the way to refer to the Virginia if you’re someone in the know.
Question in regards to seat placards: “What are the gold things on the back of the seats?” Answer: “Names of people who donated money.”
Question in regards to events: “Do they do theater here?” Answer: “Yes.”
Question in regards to balcony height: “How high is the balcony?” Answer: “Good question.”
The next stop was the side area of the stage (also known as the wings). We looked at some of the controls for the fly system, but again were not able to actually go on the stage. We also looked at the stage manager station, but I was getting a little distracted at this point by a child riding on a chaperone’s shoulders and playing with her mouth (the chaperone’s, not the child’s).
There were some kids a little too scared to join us in the basement at first because of an intimidating looking pipe, but, once you get down the stairs and past that, you’ll find yourself in a really plain-looking hallway. This white-walled, white-floored area holds seven dressing rooms, some with names, including two named for Roger Ebert and Alison Krauss. I could tell the basement had been completely redone, and I would personally classify it as being pretty nice, albeit very plain and utilitarian compared to the rest of the building.
The basement was the last stop on the tour, after which we went back up and showed ourselves out. Mitch stayed behind to answer more questions from the Summer Arts Camp kids, God bless him.
If you’re free on Wednesdays at 10 a.m., check out the Virginia Theatre tour. It’s free, and if you’re interested in seeing things up close and learning about the Virginia’s history, it’s worth your time. It took us around fifty minutes, but I’d imagine it could take more or less time based on the number of people in the group.
Photos courtesy of The Virginia Theatre.