The last time I graced the interior of the Gillioz Theatre in downtown Springfield was almost 30 years ago when Bill (aka, Starter Husband) and I saw John Travolta in “Saturday Night Fever.” Today my Rotary Club had lunch and a tour of this fabulous restored theatre that was built in 1926, abandoned in 1980 and a refuge for the homeless for 10 years and then recused in 1990. Restoration efforts took well over 15 years but the final result is astounding.
I really expected John to leap on stage in his white suit and start dancing to the disco music but alas, he was silent today. Nor did I hear the shouts of Bill and his Sigma Nu buddies in the balcony resonating some unmentionable words on opening night of “Goldfinger” in the ’60s. Clearly you had to have been a college student in Springfield about 40 years ago to truly appreciate this place for weekend movie dates – especially if you came from a small town like I did!
I applaud the efforts of so many far-sighted and far-thinking individuals who brought this project to fruition – it’s a crown jewel for downtown Springfield and I look forward to attending more events there.
Recuse: 1. to reject or challenge (a judge or juror) as disqualified to act, esp. because of interest or bias.
–verb (used without object)
2. to withdraw from a position of judging so as to avoid any semblance of partiality or bias.
By: None on November 4, 2007
at 3:19 pm