Paramount Theatre (Aurora, Illinois) facts for kids
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| Address | 23 E. Galena Blvd. |
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| Location | Aurora, Illinois |
| Owner | Aurora Civic Center Authority |
| Capacity | 1,885 |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1931 |
| Renovated | 1978 |
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Paramount Theatre
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U.S. Historic district
Contributing property |
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 Location in Illinois
Location in the United States
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| Architect | Rapp and Rapp |
| NRHP reference No. | 80001371 |
| Added to NRHP | September 10, 1986 |
The Paramount Theatre, also called the Paramount Arts Center, is a famous building in Aurora, Illinois. It first opened its doors in 1931. The theater was designed by a well-known architecture firm, Rapp and Rapp. They used a cool style called Art Deco, which has lots of geometric shapes. It also has some fancy Venetian touches.
Over many years, the Paramount Theatre has been a place for all kinds of shows. People have watched movies, plays, musicals, and concerts there. It has also hosted funny comedy shows and other exciting performances. The building was fixed up in the 1970s. In 1980, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This means it's an important historical site. The theater is also part of the Stolp Island Historic District.
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Why the Paramount Theatre Was Built
In the 1920s, a big movie company called Paramount Pictures started building new theaters. They wanted places that could show their latest films. At this time, "Talkies" were new. These were movies with sound and speaking actors. Paramount thought that movies would become very popular.
Older theaters were great for live shows. But new movie technology needed different kinds of spaces. For example, the sound needed to be just right for movies. Since many new theaters would show the same films, their designs could be similar. This helped make them special.
Building the Paramount Theatre
The Paramount Theatre in Aurora was ordered in 1931. A person named J. J. Rubens paid one million dollars for it. The famous theater architects C. W. and George Leslie Rapp designed it. This theater was special because it was the first building outside of Chicago to have air conditioning.
Paramount Pictures had big plans. They wanted to build many large theaters like this across the country. However, the Great Depression happened. This was a very tough economic time. It stopped their plans for more theaters.
The Paramount Theatre opened in September 1931. Many famous movie stars from Paramount came for the opening. These included The Marx Brothers, Jack Benny, Jeanette MacDonald, and Burns and Allen. The theater can hold 1,843 people today. It used to hold 2,125, but the number was changed for safety rules.
Renovations and Recognition
In 1976, the theater closed for some big updates. The Aurora Civic Center Authority bought it. It opened again on April 19, 1978. On September 10, 1986, the United States National Park Service recognized it as a Historic Place. It was also named an important part of the Stolp Island Historic District.
In 2006, a new lobby was added to the theater. The Paramount Theatre is still a very important part of downtown Aurora. It helps the local economy.
Famous Shows at the Paramount
The Paramount Theatre often hosts exciting new productions. In March 2020, a musical called The Secret of My Success was playing there. This musical was based on a 1987 movie. It was a brand new show, trying out before possibly going to Broadway.
The musical had Sydney Morton and Billy Harrigan Tighe as the main actors. Gordon Greenberg was the director. The show was supposed to run from February 21 to March 29. However, the last performance was on March 12. This was because the governor of Illinois closed all performance places starting March 13.
