The Warner Grand Save Your Seat Restoration is Almost Complete!

Download the Warner Grand Theater Architectural Preservation Plan
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While we're still raising the last $50,000 to pay the last of the bills, we're proud to report that the work that the Save Your Seat Campaign made possible is close to complete. Please adopt a seat today and help close our funding gap. (Photo: The Warner's Main Auditorium With Newly Restored Seats, 12/06. photo courtesy of Joseph Negro)

Here's a status report on the work to date.

Seat Restoration
(click here for a larger size slideshow of restoration photos; broadband connection recommended)

The restoration of the Warner Grand Theatre's 1,500 seats began on Wednesday July 5th when the Irwin Seating Company began the process of restoring the Theatre's seats by removing and shipping them off for refurbishing. The seats returned, beautifully refurbished, in September. They were given new cushions and reupholstered in a recreation of their original 1931 art deco pattern in a jacquard chenille, this time with a stain-resistant finish. The solid wood armrests were refinished to their original luster, and the metal backs and legs were sanded and powder coated with a textured black finish that will be easy to keep looking clean and new for years to come.

One of the main accomplishments was to completely redo and rewire the art deco end standards with aisle lighting that meets current safety standards. We repaired the old aisle lights that were in every third end standard and also placed new lights in every single armrest along the aisles. They light the way for theatre guests with understated elegance.

After all this work, please, patrons, no gum on the underside of the seats!

The Theatre reopened on November 4, 2006 with a Golden State Pops concert and celebration.

In December, Grand Vision hosted a holiday 'Popcorn and Champagne" Party for seat donors and their friends, and unveiled the donor nameplates placed on over 800 of the theater seats. Guests remarked that it was fun to walk through the aisles seeing who adopted seats and whose seats were next to each other. "It fills me with an enormous sense of satisfaction to see this work done," said Grand Vision Executive Director Liz Schindler Johnson. "We're also extremely proud that we added about a hundred wide seats throughout the center middle section, which better fit the size of today's bum, and we added a handicapped section in the back of the left orchestra section to accommodate our less able-bodied patrons."

Because some seats were widened, there are some unintentional gaps between some of the seats in the front center rows. Next year, Grand Vision plans to do some additional work to close these gaps and smooth out the look of the front center section. "We're still a work in progress," says Schindler Johnson.

Stage Rigging

The old stage rigging was completely removed by Tru-Roll, Inc., in July 2006, and throughout the summer and early fall they installed the new "tee-guided" rigging system, loading bridge and safety cage. "It's now much, much safer and simpler to operate the system, and accommodate large backdrops for dance groups and other performances," says Theater Manager Lee Sweet. A number of other improvements were made on stage to improve safety and aesthetic conditions for performers. Thanks to one of our donors, the entire back wall, up to 50 feet, was painted black and electrical improvements were made to eliminate multiple power cords and enable the house lights to be controlled from the stage. We saved some antique pieces of the old rigging which may become available in souvenir form in 2007.

New Projection Screen & Sound System

Since the Warner reopened we've shown the Swedish film "Under the Sun," and the holiday classics, A Christmas Carol, White Christmas and "It's a Wonderful Life." Already, recent filmgoers are likening the experience of seeing a film at the Warner Grand to attending a wide screen film festival. Thanks to the new 50 foot movie screen and top quality sound system, seeing a film at the Warner will no longer mean enduring muffled sound and darkened films. The cinema sound system and public address system were purchased and partially installed in early summer 2006 but because of the other work being done inside the theater, we held off final installation until December and the room will be officially "tuned" for best sound quality in early January, 2007. The new sound system was made possible by a grant from the Ludwick Family Foundation.

In a nutshell, thanks to our many supporters, it's been a great season for the Warner Grand!

Past Restoration Projects

1996 Repaired and relamped lobby chandeliers
1997 Restored marquee to historic color scheme and relit neon blade sign
2000 Re-created missing glass "lounge" sign and aisle light indicators in lobby
2003 Fireproofed curtains and made wiring repairs on stage to increase fire safety
2005 Repaired existing aisle lights, identified and halted leak causing major damage to upstairs lobby ceiling
2006 Repaired movie projector, new sound system partially installed as of April, 2006

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This page last updated: Tuesday, 20-Nov-2007 01:50:59 EST

GVF has formed a Technical Committee consisting of local theatre professionals and the Department of Cultural Affairs - all have agreed to lend their expertise in order to bring the Theatre to modern, operating standards.

The seat restoration contract has been awarded to Irwin Seating Company - since 1907 Irwin Seating, has a knowledge of public seating that blends today's technology with the style of our old, worn seats to create a durable, finished product.

The stage rigging system wil be installed by Tru-Roll, Inc - a designer and manufacturer of standard and customized theatrical rigging systems, drapery, and track for the theatre, theme park, casino, hospitality and motion picture industries as well as school and university theatres, auditoriums, churches and other places of assembly.