The stage is set for the resurrection of a marquee attraction along historic Route 66. "Friends of the Coleman", a non-profit group, is committed to the restoration of Miami's Louis XV "Vaudeville Theatre and Movie Palace", one of the best remaining examples of period architecture and local color along historic Route 66. Willie Osborn, Chairman of the Miami Downtown Redevelopment Authority (MDRA) told KODE, "You know, I think it's truly amazing that this much money has been raised, to do this. I think it's also truly amazing when you go inside the building and you see what the citizens of our town have done just to clean it up and to paint and to do things in there." Friends of the Coleman launched a fundraising campaign today which they hope will return the theatre to its glory days of the first half of last century. Barbara Smith, Executive Director or the Coleman Theatre, said, "We believe we'll have restaurants and shops coming back downtown. Because around 70% of the people who come to our shows are from out of town, they will demand those services. It will bring us back to the vital community we once were." The project will complete the original plans for the building by George Coleman, Sr., who opened the 1,600 seat Vaudeville Theater and Movie Palace on April 18, 1929. "Mr. Coleman, he's the one who found the lead and zinc and became a multi-millionaire", said Smith. "[Coleman] loved theater; [he] built this whole place in 330 days, but the Vaudeville circuit was coming and he didn't have time to finish the ballroom." The ballroom, despite having never been finished, has made a little history of its own. "One of the things that I think is interesting", said Osborn, "is Charles Banks Wilson, of course, is a favorite son of our town, but that room up there is where he painted the murals for the Capitol of Oklahoma. And we, as a community, got to go up there and watch him paint." Hundreds of volunteers have given countless hours of labor, and are now helping to raise the additional funds necessary to complete the project. "It is a go! It is definitely going to happen! There's no doubt about it! And i believe we'll get every penny that we need", said Smith. A fully restored Coleman Theatre is expected to begin a new run in about 18 months. For more information, or to find out how to contribute to the project, go online and check out www.colemantheatre.org