# Theatre renovation



## notranati (Oct 27, 2009)

Hello,
I am the theatre technician at a college, we have this old victorian built hall which the college are going to convert in to a working Studio space/theatre. We are having some heated discussions over the flooring throughout the space. At the moment we have carpet which has been laid and glued on top of parquet flooring. Here is where the argument starts... I want to keep and renovate the existing floor for the auditorium and have a sprung floor for the stage. The powers that be want a wooden sprung floor throughout the entire hall. Which in my opinion would make it look like a sports hall. Here is the funny part. the architect said that he would worry that a student might get splinters from the parquet floor!!!!!!!! (this is the level I'm dealing with). There is one valid point that if we had two clear spaces we could only ever do front on performances.
So really I'm asking for some advice on flooring for stages and also for auditoriums, am I just being a bit to pedantic about the parquet floor or is it a worthy cause?

Cheers in advance
Chris


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## museav (Oct 27, 2009)

I think the use of the space and the seating planned (permanent, temporary or retractable) may drive the floor construction. For example, I worked on one multipurpose performance space where they used retractable seating and pulled the seating closed in order to use the entire space for dance classes and rehearsals, so a sprung floor throughout made sense due to the dance use but at the same time the floor also had to be designed to support the retractable seating. Of course your school may be interested in factors such as durability and maintenance while the Architect may focus on aesthetics.

If you plan on using sets or having floor boxes those may also introduce several considerations.


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## notranati (Oct 27, 2009)

The seating is retractable and the floor,which ever we go for, will need to be maintained so that the wheels of the seating unit don't ruin the floor. 
We will be using sets on the floor so this will be a factor in our decision! 
What is a good floor to build a set on? and also be easy on the actors. My other concern with this flooring issue is that we have a perfectly good floor underneath and that the school are going to spend money on a new floor that will end up looking exactly/nearly the same as what is already there. That money could go somewhere else like acoustics.
Sorry, I'm ranting. What would you do?


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## Footer (Oct 27, 2009)

In my opinion, there is only one acceptable flooring for a stage that will be used for theatrical productions. Masonite. 

If you want to keep the space a true studio theatre, you need to have the same flooring through the entire venue. If you carpet half, you will be limiting the space tremendously.

If you end up with a hardwood floor your going to run into issues with scenery. Most scenery that ends up in a studio is either ground supported or compression boom supported. You need to have a floor you can screw/lag into. 

A masonite floor can still be sprung just like a hardwood as well. This is the way to go if your building a theatre.


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## Drmafreek (Oct 28, 2009)

I completely agree with Footer. Masonite is what is expected for most theatre floorings. And as soon as you go hardwood floor, especially with a gloss or semi gloss coat over top of it, you'll be killing your lighting designers. 

And yes, keep the masonite consistent through the entire room. The uniform look allows the designer to configure his design in any number of ways. I love designing in studio/black box spaces. The ability to create three dimensional settings really is fun.


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## mrb (Oct 28, 2009)

what about masonite, and an inventory of interface carpet tiles? That way carpeted isles, things like that can be created. Maybe too labor intensive to set up and tear down....


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## notranati (Nov 4, 2009)

Thank you for your advice, I agree that one floor type should be used throughout the space. I can't seem to find a company that produce Stagelam or Masonite in the UK!! Am I not looking hard enough?
I think we have moved away from the carpet idea as it will soon look tatty and get chewing gum over it. Plus as mrb said it will be too labour intensive.


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## shiben (Nov 5, 2009)

What about Medium Density Fiberboard? Its very similar to Masonite, and has most of the same properties, except that its usually quite a bit thicker (1/2 to 3/4 inches thick). Our current stage (built in a black box studio space) is 3/4" MDF on top of 3/4" BC, supported by several grids of 2x4s, all of which is screwed onto the traditional Maso/BC deck of the studio. Its a rather nice surface, just seal it before you get any liquid on it.


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## notranati (Nov 8, 2009)

Well I think we have come to a decision! We are going to lay down a sprung floor over the existing screed of the entire room. We are then laying a hard wearing vinyl floor called Standfast from Harlequin Floors. It is 3mm thick and very hardwearing. We are then going to lay masonite or other wood based boards over the performance area when in production. This can then be stapled on to the Standfast floor without damaging the floor, painted and have sets built on it. Also it means the designers will be able to move the stage anywhere around the room if they wish.
I am positive this is the way forward. What do you guys think?


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## cdub260 (Nov 8, 2009)

notranati said:


> I can't seem to find a company that produce Stagelam or Masonite in the UK!!



Stagelam is actually a brand name. They're located in Ontario, Canada.


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## mstaylor (Nov 8, 2009)

Just for my edification, what is a sprung floor? I am a carpenter with 30 years in the commercial and home building areas, as well as theatre and have never heard this term.


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## museav (Nov 9, 2009)

mstaylor said:


> Just for my edification, what is a sprung floor. I am a carpenter with 30 years in the commercial and home building areas, as well as theatre and have never heard this term.


A floating floor with a resilient mounting, typically neporene or foam but it can also be physical springs. See Sprung floor - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. I'll add it to the CB Wiki when I get a chance.


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## mstaylor (Nov 9, 2009)

Interesting, it lists cheerleading and sports as examples for uses. In my experience these are actual spring floors covered with thick mats. I can see the foam type being used for dance, thanks. See, an old fart can still learn.


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## shiben (Nov 9, 2009)

I believe that a lot of dance floors are sprung in some manner, to lessen wear on the knees and ankles of the dancers. One issue i see with the OP's solution is that stapling is not nearly as strong as the 1 5/8" screws that we tend to use in our floors, which might be a problem when building a free-standing flat. However, if the designers know about it, im sure it can be rectified.


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## notranati (Nov 12, 2009)

the problem now is that we are fighting with the powers that be! they are saying that they want a stage area where the floor will be sprung and have the stanfast vinyl floor, I talked about earlier, and the rest of the hall to be a wooden floor!!!!!
I can't seem to get it across to them the importance of having a unified floor throughout the entire space, sprung or not. Their argument is that the wheels of the retractable seating will scuff or mark the floor if the vinyl is laid end to end. Our argument: how can we ever explore different ways of performing theatre for our students if we can only ever do front on performances. 
The archietect is saying that a sprung floor throughout will not be strong enough to support the seating unit. The floor company say that they can reinforce the area that would be effected, meaning that we could have a unified floor. the vinyl floor will scuff up naturally, this is just a matter of fact. Are there ways to maintain a floor of this nature?


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## shiben (Nov 14, 2009)

Not sure about your vinyl covering, but wood is gonna scuff too. As will masonite, and any other surface that you put down. We end up re-painting the floor of our theater pretty much every show, and thats how we maintain it. THe real problem we have been having is if you get a semi-gloss finish for some reason. That scuffs even more. I just checked the specs on the floor material you want to get, and you ought to be fine. Yeah, it will probably scuff, but so will everything else. In my opinion, its kind of a silly thing to make a big deal over, because it looks pretty durable. Its well-suited for rock shows, and if those DONT take serious abuse, I dont know what does.


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