Champaign’s Virginia Theatre closing for renovations next year

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — A Central Illinois theatre is set to get some upgrades.

The Virginia Theatre in Champaign will be closing for construction come January, with no events happening between then and April. Crews will be working on the fly system, which controls the ropes, pulleys and counter weights.

The Champaign Park District said it’s been outdated for several years now.

“It’s not something that would be visible to the average person, but it will make a big impact on our performances,” said Chelsea Norton, the Park District’s Marketing and Development Director. “We anticipate this upgraded fly control system to give us more flexibility and make things just work a little bit more smoothly on stage and hopefully bring more of a draw to other performances.”

Norton said that in addition to the fly system, they’ll also be doing some painting and plaster work. The building will reopen just in time for Ebertfest.

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