The Paramount Theatre in Aurora was built in 1931 at the peak of the opulent movie palace trend, after theatre design had shifted from deep vaudeville stages toward narrower stages and flashy, exotic interiors created specifically for motion pictures. Designed by George and C.W. Rapp, who also designed the Chicago Theatre and the Rialto Theatre in Joliet, it features an auditorium meant to feel like an outdoor performance space, with painted fabric murals suggesting distant vistas, a plaster medallion, and a petal chandelier set in a sky-blue ceiling accented by stylized silver rays. Its exterior makes lavish use of multi-colored decorative terra cotta, especially around the unusual lowered entry. The theatre underwent a $2.9 million renovation in 1978 and continues as a prestigious regional cultural attraction. To the west of the entrance, Paramount Park existed from 1930 to 1934 as a restful retreat for theatre patrons, with paths, a pond, a garden, and miniature golf; in November 1987, that space was rededicated as Sesquicentennial Park, whose central feature is the sculpture "City Lights, City Life" by Chicago artist Jerry Peart. The property was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 18, 1980.