I don’t know the current status of the building since I don’t go to Wytheville that often, but I do know how it got its name. The original owners’s last names were Miller and Ewald. They combined the names, and presto! Millwald.
I first saw the Millwald Theatre in 1981 when I went to see “9 to 5” with my best friend, his sister and her boyfriend. I was 15 years old and had a dream of opening a movie theatre of my own some day. I remember the Millwald as being somewhat run-down, but it attracted a lot of movie-goers from Wythe and Smyth Counties. I’m sure most of its patrons didn’t think the Millwald a “beautiful” theatre, yet if you looked closely enough, its hidden beauty emerged. The downstairs section looked like it might have been designed to resemble a Roman courtyard. The lower portion of the walls were painted to look like stone blocks, and this design was repeated around the exit doorways on each side of the stage. The rather large balcony and projection booth were reached by an attractive stairway on either side of the auditorium in the rear. The ceiling was the most beautiful part of the building. There were intricate designs encased in what appeared to be large wooden beams and crossbeams.
In the mid 1980s the balcony was split into 2 dinky theatres and, in my opinion, the movie-going experience at the Millwald was ruined. I would love to see a non-profit organization or the Town government purchase this building and restore it as a community arts center. It definately has the potential to revitalize downtown Wytheville. History has shown that in many cases, it is an old theatre that keeps a town alive.
I don’t know the current status of the building since I don’t go to Wytheville that often, but I do know how it got its name. The original owners’s last names were Miller and Ewald. They combined the names, and presto! Millwald.
I first saw the Millwald Theatre in 1981 when I went to see “9 to 5” with my best friend, his sister and her boyfriend. I was 15 years old and had a dream of opening a movie theatre of my own some day. I remember the Millwald as being somewhat run-down, but it attracted a lot of movie-goers from Wythe and Smyth Counties. I’m sure most of its patrons didn’t think the Millwald a “beautiful” theatre, yet if you looked closely enough, its hidden beauty emerged. The downstairs section looked like it might have been designed to resemble a Roman courtyard. The lower portion of the walls were painted to look like stone blocks, and this design was repeated around the exit doorways on each side of the stage. The rather large balcony and projection booth were reached by an attractive stairway on either side of the auditorium in the rear. The ceiling was the most beautiful part of the building. There were intricate designs encased in what appeared to be large wooden beams and crossbeams.
In the mid 1980s the balcony was split into 2 dinky theatres and, in my opinion, the movie-going experience at the Millwald was ruined. I would love to see a non-profit organization or the Town government purchase this building and restore it as a community arts center. It definately has the potential to revitalize downtown Wytheville. History has shown that in many cases, it is an old theatre that keeps a town alive.
Architect: Eubank & Caldwell, Roanoke, VA. The Lincoln was the flagship of the Lincoln Theatres Corporation in Southwest Virginia.
The Lincoln will open May 16, 2004 with Riders in the Sky. The theatre will be open for tours on May 1.