Lovely afternoon at The Paramount Theatre where we attended a ballet production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Our tickets were inexpensive for genuinely good view of the stage in row J. Ushers were friendly and eager to assist everyone who needed help finding their seats. The antique decor, paintings of 17th century ladies & gents, and yellow upholstery all give an authentic live theater experience. There was a strange little wall mounted water fixture (see picture) that I really liked even though I'm not sure what it is practically for. My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed the performance. We expected live instruments and were surprised it was set to prerecorded orchestral music, but the sound quality was great so no worries. My only real complaint is that when we stopped by earlier that afternoon to buy our tickets, the fellow at the window seemed really put out . He answered our questions, but it felt like we were imposing on him. There was no one in line behind us and it's our first time going to a ballet since childhood, so we had some newbie questions. To engage with something like this for the first time is to step outside of our comfort zone, and I wish that the guy helping us had shown a more generous tone in the customer service department. His palpable annoyance very nearly scared us off buying tickets to this show at all. read more

See all

This historical Theater is gorgeous! I'm so glad we came from out of town to see Mandy Patinkin here on a recent Sunday night. It was a short easy walk from our Home2Suites hotel. The lobby was nice. Bathrooms really nice. What a wonderful venue! read more

See all

Fabulous experience listening to Joshua Bell and The Academy of St. Martins in the Field. kudos to Shaun, Director of Development, for making it happen! read more

Beautiful theatre. Seats are spacious. Great place to see a show. The staff was attentive and the bathrooms were clean.

The theme of seeing a show here is easy. Straight forward website that is easy to use and thankfully does not require you to set up an account or give more information than is needed to complete the transaction. Ticket pickup at will call was also easy. No line or ID asked for, just gave my name and the tickets were handed over. Parking here is very easy with two city run decks very close by. We chose the Water Street deck. It was a block away and $6 for the time we needed was more than reasonable. Pre-show food-provisions-etc. are also very easy with the downtown mall/pedestrian walkway right outside the theatre's front door. One thing that surprised me is that they do allow popcorn, snacks, drinks, etc. into the seating area. Most older/historic venues usually are water only or nothing at all. If you need to have that with you, very convenient. If I'm going to be nitpicky, the sound for the show at times wasn't the greatest but I certainly don't know if that was because of the band's sound guy or the theatre's equipment. Every smaller town worth their salt usually has some type of older theater like this which has lived a few lives and gets by doing movies, theatre and concerts. The Paramount is no exception and is a beautiful venue that looks like it doesn't have a bad seat in the house. Well worth a visit to whatever they are offering. read more

The Paramount Theater - Tower of Power - Performing Arts Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

See all

Lovely restored theatre. Excellent views from nearly all seats. Magical experience. A time capsule to earlier, grander days.

Lovely theater with awesome volunteers! Very helpful when asked questions and to help find seats, etc. One word of warning -- if you're over 5'10" be prepared to be very scrunched in your seat. Legroom is not great! read more

See all

Being from Portland, Maine, I have to compare everything to our local, intimate venue, the State Theater. The Paramount Theatre had the State Theater beat by many many lengths. The interior was gorgeous, clearly redesigned. The seating was comfortable and tiered very well, so you could see. Went here for the Banff film festival and had an excellent time, in the very back row. Wouldn't hesitate to see a show there if I was in town, I can imagine the acoustics would be great, especially with all the paneling on the walls specifically made for acoustics. Absolutely gorgeous! read more

The Paramount Theater - Inside the theater - Performing Arts Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

See all

Love this theater! The staff are so attentive and caring to everyone visiting. The theater itself is so pretty. Highly recommend supporting this theater. read more

Amazing theater in the downtown area of Charlottesville! They had old movies showing for 0.25$ when we were there so we immediately got tickets! They serve popcorn, sweets and drinks at the concession stand. I really enjoyed the architecture and of course the movie! read more

The Paramount Theater - Performing Arts Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Great venue. The sound is usually perfect. The ushers donate their time and energy to keep the ticket prices low. But my favorite thing about the Paramount is the bathrooms. I'm in the restaurant business. A beautiful and extremely clean bathroom shows everything about a venue. Class act. read more

Have been here for several different shows. Always had a good time. It doesn't matter where you sit due to its small size. No bad seats.

Absolutely beautiful inside! I came with the fam to see Whose Live Anyway show and the staff was very friendly and welcoming. They directed us right to our seats like it was their favorite thing in the world to do. It was very clean inside the theater and in the lobby area. My dad was the only one who used the restroom and he laughed saying they put it in the basement. But that was also clean and taken care of. read more

An absolute historic gem on the downtown mall in Charlottesville. The multiple floors with restroom options and bars, made everything flow smoothly and quickly without feeling rush for the show. The seats are comfortable and from the back row in the orchestra felt like there is not a bad seat in the house. It is worth going to a production there to sit in the historic theater. read more

See all

This is a beautiful theater. Meticulously maintained. I must say we have attended many music and comedy shows at the Paramount and have never been disappointed with performances. One last item, the staff, always helpful, always so pleasant with big smiles! read more

Timing: Halloween Rocky Horror Picture Show Experience: Before the show there was a great costume contest with students and alumni participating. The audience was hysterical throughout. Ambiance: The interior of the theater is vintage, gorgeous and well maintained. The seats are pretty comfortable too, and the staff is friendly. Overall: Definitely check this out if you're in the Charlottesville area after shopping and dinner. read more

The Paramount Theater - The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Halloween Viewing - Performing Arts Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Love the historic feel to this theatre in the downtown mall built in the 1930s but we were told was renovated within the last 10 years by locals after falling into disrepair from neglect. We saw the movie screening of Frankinstein which was dark, memorizing and well done from and all British cast. The seating, hallways, downstairs, upstairs and concession area all had a warm feeling to them. Only down side was the guy being the ticket counter the day before who sold us (or should I say we sold ourselves) our tickets. No personality, not welcoming and we had to pull information on the show the next night from him. He lacks any customer service which was sad but we still loved the theatre! Can't wait to see a live performance there someday. read more

The Paramount Theater - Performing Arts Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Tonight I visited The Paramount Theater for the first time in a very long time & I absolutely loved the atmosphere of the place. It reminds me of the golden ages of plays that I've seen in many classic films, the concession prices around the same as the other movie theaters in town which I wouldn't say is cheap but not too bad overall. The staff seems very friendly, I even got a thank you from a woman that worked there for picking up my trash, guess a small thing like that goes a long way. The show I saw was Christmas with Elvis (Matt Lewis) & he is the best Elvis impersonator I've seen & I've seen a lot. He has the voice, the moves & the looks, he's also throws some comedic stuff in there. It sounds like his show is a yearly one so if you live Elvis it is a must see. read more

Can't believe I've never reviewed this place before, because it's a real favorite of ours. The Paramount Theatre in Charlottesville is a true Virginia icon. Fully restored in true Art-Deco fashion, we've been enjoying their venues for MANY years now. Everything from old classic movies, to live concerts, to NY Metropolitan Opera HD live simulcast opera broadcasts as well as replays. The restored theatre is GORGEOUS & seats are comfortable. In addition, they have a full concession stand (& some productions include extended wine/meal offerings). During opera broadcasts, there's always an intermission with free gourmet cookie/candy snacks offered on trays by volunteer waitstaff in the lobby. Yesterday enjoyed a big-screen viewing of "The Shining" - a Paramount Halloween special. Lots of fun to see it again on the big screen for a mere $6 each. In the past we've viewed dozens of NY Metropolitan Opera live HD broadcasts, as well as favorite holiday films like the classic Alistair Sim "A Christmas Carol" flick, the silent original "Nosferatu", good old "Bride of Frankenstein", & many others. Always lots of fun & really nice decent film prints. Tickets are available via their box office live or via phone during the weekday hours of 10 a.m.-2 p.m., as well as online 24/7. Beautiful venue in a wonderful location (the downtown historic Charlottesville pedestrian mall) that offers lots of shop browsing & dining options. read more

I take my daughter to her first movie. Drunk people talk the whole time, making fun of the people around them. My wife goes to get the manager. The manager says they usually tell people to move if they have problems with other people. Given there's nowhere else to sit, we leave. So this is my memory of my daughters first movie theater experience. Thanks for ruining that for me. Never going back. read more

Very nice, old theater. It has all the same old details in it. Lots of gold color. The seats were very comfortable and the workers were very sweet. We had a great time seeing "Oklahoma!" in this theater about three months ago. read more

Lovely place for an event. Spacious room. The seating is tight, as in most older theaters, but not uncomfortable. We saw Brian Regan and had great seats, sound was good and the staff was very nice. Enjoyable venue! read more

I've seen a couple of 80s movies here in the last couple weeks and I gotta say, the venue makes for a great movie experience. The theater looks old-timey great and the concession stand offers up bier and wine. Great seats all around but I prefer the balcony seating. read more

Lovely venue, beautifully appointed and well-run. Any event would be enhanced by this delightful site. read more

Really cool & unique place! Great to go here to switch it up from the usual movie theater. The staff is really nice too! The decor is breath-taking and refreshing. A funky place to spend a Friday night! read more

See all

If you are ever in Charlottesville this is a definite MUST see. It is gorgeous and unique. Highly recommended!

Booked three tickets for over hundred dollars one month ahead of time for a show on Dec 9, 2018. However, we are experiencing heavy snow on the day of the show. There is no refund or any compensation for the unexpected inclement weather. What a waste of money! Will never book ahead of time! read more

Watch out for Encores! An excellent venue with great acts that are hard to see in other parts of VA. The location on the Mall offers great restauarants, and the venue is small enough to be intimate. We're in town half a dozen times per year to see Taj Mahal, PAt Metheny, Richard Thompson, Ylang, Ylang and others. But watch where you park. Collier's towing runs a "gotcha" parking lot towing scheme exists at the parking lot on First and Main. Due to convenience, we've used the First & Main lot for years. At a recent concert we shared a cab with several concertgoers who guessed the end time incorrectly and had their cars towed as well. The prepayment method typically requires a "safety" stay of an extra hour to be certain that your car is still in the lot when you return. A 30 minute overlap doesn't seem to faze the folks at Colliers - they extract your car in a timely fashion to grab their fee. A good faith payment of 3 hours seems insufficient to garner any interest for the last several minutes. Other prepay lots using prepay methods and technology like 1st and Main provide cell phone alerts and the opportunity to extend if plans change (e.g. Amtrak Richmond.) However, the owners of this lot appear to find providing a bounty to disrupt the plans otherwise good customers to be a more lucrative arrangement. $150 for a quick tow and about 30 minutes of "storage" is a nice revenue opportunity, especially when an event runs late and you can capture it in bulk. We found Callier's sullen and impatient. We'll continue to enjoy regualr shows at the Paramount, but not patronize First and Main parking in the future. read more

Breathtaking art-deco treasure in the heart of the downtown mall that shows National Theatre Live performances at a great price. Yes, the seats can be uncomfortable, especially for plays that run over 2.5 hours, but the ambiance, friendly front-of-house staff, and the bar more than makes up for it. Love it. read more