The gentle glow of a neon marquee and the hum of a Wurlitzer pipe organ in downtown Champaign have been beckoning theater lovers for more than 84 years.

The Virginia Theatre, 203 W. Park Ave., is one of the area’s most beloved historic facilities, but for many years, the theater was allowed to deteriorate, losing much of the intrigue that made it a landmark.

Unlike in the classic movies it shows, however, there was no heroic masked man ready to swoop in to save this damsel in distress. So in January 2000, the Champaign Park District acquired the facility and renovations began to restore it to its original splendor.

“If there is one building worth saving in Champaign, it is the Virginia Theatre,” Mayor Gerald Schweighart said in a 2002 theater publication.

To date, nearly $2.5 million in city funding, state grants and donations have helped bring the theater back to life. With its history and charm, the theater is a prime spot for enjoying a film with friends this summer.

In her old age, the auditorium still hosts many events, including the Champaign-Urbana Theatre Company’s performances and Roger Ebert’s Overlooked Films Festival.

The festival draws movie fans from across the country. In 2005, the festival hosted a sold-out crowd of 18,000 attendees. Other major draws include the classic films series sponsored by the Champaign News-Gazette, which has brought in as many as 500 viewers in a single night.

A theater is a “different type of facility” for a park district to own, said Jameel Jones, cultural arts manager for the Champaign Park district. However, taking over and restoring landmarks has become more of a commonality for park districts nation-wide in the past few years, Jones said.

The park district now has creative control, allowing for many types of performances. The theater hosts concerts, movies, plays, weddings, business meetings and more. Jones said the major benefit of the theater being under city ownership is that they are able to accept community feedback and suggestions.

Karen Thomas, facility coordinator for the theater, said that patrons are welcome to take a survey on the Virginia Theater’s Web site or e-mail the staff to make suggestions for movies that are played. Also, many of the events planned for the remainder of the year cost as little at $3.

When the building was acquired from a private owner, it was still operating as a theater, but safety inspections deemed the building not up to code. It was shut down until repairs could be made. After reopening, renovations have been ongoing, both inside and out.

The exterior of the building, which features Italian Renaissance architecture, has been restored close to original condition. Inside the theater, the Wurlitzer 185 Special, one of only a handful of operable theater organs in North America that are original installations, is kept in excellent condition by William York of Urbana. York still plays the organ at certain events, Thomas said.

Inside the projection booth, 35mm films are shown on a reel-to-reel system. The theater has the capability to play films digitally, but the staff prefers to show films in their original medium.

“If you watch really closely, there is a white dot in the corner of the screen when the reel needs to be changed,” Thomas said. “It’s hard to catch, it’s only there for a split second, but all of our operators are in the projectionist’s union and they have been doing this work for years. They are very skilled.”

The stage curtain is still operated by rope and sandbag, an element that most theaters have done away with, Thomas said.

The auditorium, which seats 1524, has also undergone many improvements since the city takeover. The detailing that lines the base of the balcony is tarnished, with the exception of the center panel, which was given special attention by an expert. It now shines a bright gold as a testament to both the theater’s original beauty.

Stained glass light fixtures adorn the ceiling near the auditorium’s entrances. The two private boxes surrounding the stage are elegant focal points. Though they are not usable as seating, one houses the pipes of the organ and the other has been used for effect in plays.

Though this old lady’s face-lift is not near completion, the building is in excellent condition. Because of the original quality of construction, it is one of the strongest and safest buildings in downtown Champaign, Thomas said.

With just one foot inside the door, visitors experience a step back to the golden ages of silent films and “talkies.” The walls seem to whisper their memories of plays performed and audiences, come and gone.

“The building has so much history, you’d expect there to be some ghost stories, or staff saying they’ve experiences odd things, but no,” Thomas said. “We have a volunteer who has been helping here since 1944, and I always ask him, but he swears we don’t have any ghosts.”

With donations from the community, city funding, and grants, the renovations will continue until completion. Thomas said she hopes someday, the theater will be as close as possible to its original condition.

“The theater is a staple of the community,” Jones said. “It is one of the strongest facilities and hopefully, someday we’ll be able to bring it back to where it should be.”