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kicking off our 2000 bulbs of light campaign

 These are exciting times at The Murphy Theatre. 


COVID finally appears to be in our rearview mirror, we’re enjoying back-to-back record-breaking annual membership, growing audience numbers, a wider variety of entertainment offerings, including national acts gracing our stage, and increased participation from our local businesses, the city, county, even the state; all in the spirit of cooperation, to keep this landmark in the center of a historic downtown alive and well. 


We have a 73-year old marquee, the fourth one in the life of The Murphy Theatre, and the sign that has lasted the longest by far. Sadly though, it has seen better days. The harsh winters and exposure to other elements has brought us to the point of much needed repairs. We can no longer kick this can down the road, and a simple coat of paint won’t do the trick.  


There was a choice. Do we dare take the easy route and simply tear this marquee down and replace it, like others have in the past, or, do we repair this iconic structure, and keep it as true to its current look as much as we possibly can, returning all its bells and whistles while enhancing its functionality to meet the demands of the 21st Century?  

Check out some of The Murphy's signs through the years!

DID YOU KNOW? The original look of The Murphy Theatre had no marquee at all!

One can only imagine the emotions from the locals when learning back in the day about the decision to simply replace their marquee, instead of repairing it. When you do the math, the other three marquees must have had an average life span of right around ten years. And this one is 73! You could easily argue the need to simply replace this one.  


We chose to do the latter of our two options. Rather than replacing it, we are repairing this marquee. One of the many challenges in this effort, is finding all the replacement parts. Through our extensive research and in consultation with sign experts near and far, we have learned some of the malfunctioning parts on our sign are simply no longer available, and some of the technology to make the lights function as they once did is obsolete.


So, we presented our repair and restoration outline to the Wilmington Planning Commission, answered all of their questions, and were approved to move forward with our project.  


We are excited to launch 2000 Bulbs of Light. Along with our partnership with Merchants National Bank, 2000 Bulbs of Light is our Marquee Repair and Restoration Fundraising Campaign.


This fundraising campaign has no government dollars attached to it. Instead, we are going directly to the public, our generous patrons, those who have been supporting us, attending our shows and events, lending a hand, actually being present at the theatre. 

The Murphy Theatre is offering the public an exciting opportunity to own a piece of history!

This summer, The Murphy Theatre will be turning 105 years old, so for every contribution of $105, we will present you with one of the bulbs from our current marquee.

  • Orders are already being taken, but we will not remove the purchased bulbs until our birthday weekend, which is July 23. 


  • You can find out how to make your donation by clicking the button to the right, by calling 937-382-3643 or by stopping by the theatre during office hours.


  • Your Murphy Marquee bulb will be carefully packaged with shredded recycled Murphy programs serving as the cushioning to keep your piece of history safe.


  • Bulbs are now ready for pickup! If you are unable to stop by the theatre to pick up your bulb, please add $20 to your contribution for shipping and special handling. 


OWN A PIECE OF MURPHY HISTORY — CONTRIBUTE TODAY!

Click Here

Marquee Repair and Restoration FAQ

WHEN WILL THIS PROJECT TAKE PLACE?

WHEN WILL THIS PROJECT TAKE PLACE?

WHEN WILL THIS PROJECT TAKE PLACE?

On-site work began on Monday, July 31 (please excuse our scaffolding!), and work is anticipated to be 

completed in October.

WILL THE SIGN LOOK DIFFERENT?

WHEN WILL THIS PROJECT TAKE PLACE?

WHEN WILL THIS PROJECT TAKE PLACE?

OUR GOAL IS TO MAINTAIN THE LOOK OF THIS 

HISTORIC LANDMARK!

 

The marquee will not be larger, and the “blade” (that very cool vertical center piece that says “MURPHY”) will not be taken down and shipped away to be worked on as is the case with most theatre signs similar to ours. Our marquee will be repaired and restored by a local company.


The original bells and whistles of the sign will be restored — some of which many Wilmington residents may have never seen functioning in their prime!


With the energy-saving tweaks we are making to the sign, The Murphy Theatre will save thousands of dollars on utility costs alone annually. 

SO WHAT'S CHANGING?

The message panel that we currently change manually on a near-daily basis, the panel you see as you drive past the theatre, will be updated to a digital panel. It will have the same look as the current panel, but it will be cleaner, still with the lines going across the panels, and the letters the same size as we use now, only we’ll be ab

The message panel that we currently change manually on a near-daily basis, the panel you see as you drive past the theatre, will be updated to a digital panel. It will have the same look as the current panel, but it will be cleaner, still with the lines going across the panels, and the letters the same size as we use now, only we’ll be able to change this sign from a laptop, smartphone, or iPad. The panel on the other side will remain as is, but cleaned up and repaired as well.  

 

When you only have one or two shows a month, changing the message from the ladder isn’t so difficult, but quite a different story when you have four, sometimes five different events within one week or believe it or not, sometimes within three days, that need to share that marquee. 

In compliance with city code, we will not change this signage any more often than once every 60 minutes. There will be NO flashing graphics, NO scrolling, and NO brightly colored changing images!

The lumens emanating from the panels will be able to be dimmed for later in the evening, something we cannot currently control.

Thank you for your support of our 2000 Bulbs of Light Campaign, and thank you to those who have already made their donation!

CONTRIBUTE TODAY

SPECIAL THANKS to those who have contributed so far!

Dr. Chad and Amanda McKay

Tom & D.D. Breckel

Lisa & Victor Haines

Anonymous

Jim & Susie Heimbach

Joe Spicer

Jean Black

Julie Butcher

Jeff and Marina Dodaro

Will and Donna Barnhart

Jay & Karen Williams

The York Family

Laura Brown

Marsha Bennett

Joe and Laura Moore

Dave Gilkerson Family

Jill & Terry Richard

T. Alex & Jamie Beres

Mallory and John Behan

Samuel Stratman

Greg & Jennifer Grove

Brad & Darcy Reynolds

Anonymous

Anonymous

Anonymous

Tanya Day, Jordan, Mackenzie, Griffin, and Jillian Snarr

Dan and Marla Stewart

Dr John & Jennifer Hollon

Sally & Stephen Buchanan

Bruce F. & Dorothy J. Henry

Diana Rhinehart

Luke G's HS Graduation

Charles Watts

Andrew Brown

James and Brenda Brackman

Gene & Sharon Breckel

Anonymous

Jim & Barbara Rhinehart

Pat & Candy Fenner

Pat Moorman

Sylvia & Merle Henry

Jeff & Janell Smart

Charles and Karen Manor Garman

Neil and Veronica Campbel

lJoyce Kelly

John & Nancy Stanforth

Dale & Lynne Adkins

Paul & Colleen Fear

Mary Banner

Gregory Oliver

Christine & Gerald Krisa

Wilmington Auto Center Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram

Clinton County Motorsports

John & Carol Joy

May Gerchack & Dave Stewart

Pat & Terry Thompson

Brian & Angella Boyd

Bill & Loretta Stackhouse

George and Colleen Bailey

Jacob Ingersoll

Gwendolyn Bogan

The Fancy Free Cloggers

Kruger & Hodges Attorneys at Law

Cindy Camp

Randy and Shelly Williamson

The General Denver Hotel

Joyce & Sam Kaeser

Lori A. Burton-Cluxton

Vicki Trapp

Anonymous

Brian & Elizabeth Smith

Barbara Bernard Loudenslager

Taylor Stuckert

Anonymous

Mark & Lori Williams

Sharon A. Oliver

Amanda Martin

Jack and Charlotte Gasaway

Charlie & Rachel Hargrave

Anonymous

Timothy Larrick

Cheri & Dan Hunter

Darrell & Jennifer McIntosh

Eric Belfrage

Alison Belfrage

Susannah Davids

Lisa Elcok

Ruth Ann Faris

Carole France

Orange Frazer Press

Brown Funeral Home

John Haberfield

The Harkins Family

Erin & Lj Jellsion

Rick and Steph Moreton

Jason & Margaret Morgan

John Murphy

Butch & Dollie Peelle

Leilani and Tom Popp

Collett Propane

David & Mary Ann Raizk

David & Suzie Rice

Tanya Day, Jordan, Mackenzie, Griffin, and Jillian Snarr

Aunt Charlotte

Aunt Dutch

Terri Stauffer

Doug and Melinda Tilton

Mason Schaffer

Carrie Zeigler State Farm Insurance Agency

... and SPECIAL THANKS to our corporate sponsors!

 Air Transport Services Group

Kava House

Collett Propane

Brown Funeral Home

American Equipment Service

Wilmington Auto Center/Chrysler Dodge Jeep-Ram

General Denver Hotel

Carrie Zeigler, State Farm Insurance

Kruger and Hodges Attorneys at Law

Clinton County Motor Sports

Wilmington Dental Arts

Hitachi Astemo, America's Charity Golf Outing 

Champion Bridge

People's Bank

Orange Frazer Press

Fancy Free Cloggers


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 937-382-3643 boxoffice@themurphytheatre.org 

  • Concerts
  • Films
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  • Murphy Stage Company
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