June 2025.
DeKalb’s Egyptian Theatre is an example of Egyptian Revival architecture, which became popular in the United States during the 1920s after contemporary archaeological discoveries of ancient Egyptian tombs and artifacts. Though a little gaudy in its execution, the architect still tried to authentically represent the culture instead of thoughtlessly borrowing from different aesthetics and periods.
The Egyptian Theatre is located at 135 North 2nd Street in downtown DeKalb, Illinois. It is bordered by low-rise buildings to the north, Lincoln Highway’s Gilded Age buildings to the south, 2nd Street to the east, and a parking lot to the west.
History
Historic photo of the theater (left). (Egyptian Theatre website)
In 1928, the DeKalb Theater Company wanted to design a new movie and vaudeville theater that would replace an older building at the corner of 1st Street and Lincoln Highway (since demolished). At that time, popular choices were classically-inspired designs like Beaux-Arts or Renaissance Revival, as well as early Art Deco architecture. The company decided on Egyptian Revival after that influence reached DeKalb, and Chicago architect Elmer F. Behrns was commissioned. Its construction took place during 1929, and the theater opened that December. The Egyptian Theatre was intended to be part of a larger complex, including a hotel, but due to the Great Depression these were never built. (Another effect was that the existing tile floor was meant to be marble.)
The Egyptian Theatre’s first movie run was The Hottentot, a “talkie” about horse racing. At that time, admission was 50c per adult and 25c per child. Movies were shown all week, but the vaudeville acts only occurred on weekends between movie showings. However, as vaudeville began to decline in popularity, the Egyptian Theatre focused more on movies.
The theater c. 1970s. (Egyptian Theatre website)
The theater continued to play movies and occasional live shows through the 1970s, but by this time the building began to decay. The exterior terra-cotta started to walk away, and inside holes in the ceiling caused water damage and crumbling plaster. It closed in 1977 and the city of DeKalb took ownership of the building.
Slated for demolition in 1978, DeKalb citizens worked to save the Egyptian Theatre. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places that year, and a $2.3 million grant from the state of Illinois financed a restoration that began in 1982. The theater reopened in 1983 and became a popular venue for community events. A major expansion occurred between 2019 and 2020, which added more space for the building’s different functions and added air conditioning.
Photos
Here is the main facade as it appears today:
The building makes kind of an L shape in plan, as the showing area is perpendicular to the entrance. You can see the addition to the left of the building.
Behrns’ design for the facade was themed around Ramses II, one of the most powerful and well-known rulers of ancient Egypt:
It is expressed as a grand temple gate, as seen by the two large piers at the corners and recessed inner stained-glass windows. The windows themselves include a scarab, a well-known symbol, which holds up a sun that represents the god Ra:
The polychrome ornamentation incorporates Egyptian motifs such as snakes, bead-and-reel patterns, and the small heads here:
Each corner has a terra-cotta pharaoh holding a crook and flail:
Not sure how I feel about the new marquee…it matches the existing building, but something about it reminds me of the Egyptian-themed portable rides that are at every county fair ever:
Sources:
No comments:
Post a Comment