Historic theater restored

June Casagrande

NEWPORT BEACH -- Step aside, Cineplex. The Lido is back.

After two months of being closed for renovations, the historic 1939

Lido Theater reopened to its original splendor Friday with a showing of

“Amelie.”

“A lot of people really enjoy an alternative to the

Cineplexexperience,” said Lyndon Golin, president of Regency Theaters,

which owns Lido Theater.

The original art-deco aura is alive at the theater, which now sports a

new marquee. Inside, the character of the once-crumbling, 62-year-old

structure has been fully restored.

“This mural had pretty much fallen down in big pieces over the years,”

Golin said, gesturing to the colorful paintings that covered the walls

inside the theater’s main auditorium.

Newport Beach artist Ellen Gladis painstakingly restored the interior

mural of an ocean scene.

Another spectacular sight in the movie house is its use of florescent

and black lights. A mural of an underwater world, lighted by black

lights, illuminates movie patrons’ way to the newly reopened balcony.

Once upstairs, the spacious and sprawling loft of 200 seats offers

moviegoers leg room and an airy lift over the 400-seat main auditorium

below.

“We’re lucky to be in a community that appreciates and supports

historic value,” Golin said.

“Amelie” was selected as the renovated theater’s inaugural show

because of its status as a raved-about foreign film. It is expected to

run at the Lido Theater until shortly before Christmas, when the theater

will announce its holiday selection.

FYI

* WHAT: The French film “Amelie”

* WHEN: Show times vary daily

* WHERE: The Lido Theater, Via Lido Avenue at Newport Boulevard in

Newport Beach

* CALL: (949) 673-8350