giant retractable banner to mask stage in cafetorium?

Background: school theatre program with a 24' wide x 16' deep thrust stage plopped at one end of a cafeteria. [There is a proscenium opening behind, and the stage extends another 16' back.] The administration wants us to figure out how to install a movable barrier that would go across the stage apron and mask the stage from the rest of the room. [It is evidently unsightly.] I'm not opposed to the idea, since it would let us do things like paint, hang and cable lights, and do quieter set work while lunch and other activities are in progress in the rest of the room.

The entire room is 120' long and 60' wide, with large timber joists (the bottom chord of roof trusses) spanning the 60' width at 8' intervals, and one of these is in the right spot to hang a curtain track or a motorized screen housing.

The rub is that we'd only be able to mask the middle 50% (30') of the full width, and must leave 15' open on either side open to allow for egress. Further, there is not enough space on either end of the joist to store 3-4' of soft goods hanging from a track, so walk-along curtains are out.

So, we are wondering if a (vertically) retractable vinyl screen or banner would work. The panel would end up being about 30' wide x 14' (visible) tall. There are companies that make motorized projection screens of this size, but we'd want ours printed with graphics, so I guess it'd be more akin to a giant trade show banner? See the attachment for a basic mock-up.

Do any of you have any suggestions on where to start with this search?

Many thanks -

Stuart R in Miami

I would start with Rose Brand, iWeiss, or a local theatrical contractor.

I would suggestion something like a "gym divider curtain". you could get a pre-packaged design or you could ask a rigging installer to design build a Lineshaft. you'd want to source the vinyl material for the 'curtain' and have it printed at a Large format printer. Many places that do Billboards do this kind of printing although is you want super nice looking you might want to go with a Rosebrand or Rosco printed banner.

*edit* I second iWeiss.

A "U" shape track can solve your egress issue. Vertical, walk draw or biparting are all possible. Even openings for those stage steps can be built into a well engineered divider.

Lots and lots of venues used to use olio drops for their scenery and main drape (and there are still plenty of little ones around, at least around here in New England, that still do--places like town halls and grange halls). This sounds roughly like what you're attempting to do, at least in appearance if not in technology. I don't see any reason why it would be entirely unworkable if designed and installed appropriately.

I would give some thought to how the curtain or vinyl or whatever will stand up to students eating lunch and milling about in its general vicinity day in and day out. From your rendering, it looks as though it would be landing in the house, if that's the right term for a cafetorium, rather than on the stage. It's going to get jostled and rubbed and perhaps splattered on a fairly regular basis, I'd imagine.

DrewE said:

I would give some thought to how the curtain or vinyl or whatever will stand up to students eating lunch and milling about in its general vicinity day in and day out. From your rendering, it looks as though it would be landing in the house, if that's the right term for a cafetorium, rather than on the stage. It's going to get jostled and rubbed and perhaps splattered on a fairly regular basis, I'd imagine.

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DrewE brings up a good point. I once found two of our better HS actors, both athletes, kicking volleyballs into our scrim for fun………..

Thank you all. It *is* the modern equivalent of an olio drop, come to think of it. As for its placement, and the likelihood of mischief, I definitely hear you but haven't quite figured out a work-around for that element. The apron is 24' wide, and given sight lines, it would be much better to have a 32' (I'm guessing) banner in front of it, else large swaths of the cafeteria users will be able to see around it. Further, the obvious joist to use for hanging is a foot DS of the edge of the apron. If the banner is a durable vinyl or similar, short of people literally swinging on it, I think it would probably be ok. And yes, it's definitely possible that it will get splashed with milk, or soup, or whatever - another reason to use something wipeable like this instead of soft goods!

I'm with Van on a gym divider or something purpose-engineered for the use intended. I would not trust vinyl banner or other material designed for looking and not touching to hold up to the rigors of long-term use.

My company owns a Hudson Scenic roll drop that is exactly what you are describing. Ours has threaded inserts in the drum that allows us to put screws through grommets to change out the drops for our needs. It is motorized and connects to out DWU controller. It works great!

I am curious if a Yale Tech Briefs roll drop would work in this situation? I don't remember which of the tech briefs it was in, but it might be a lower cost option. The weight of the drum would be the biggest hurdle. Once some years ago I built one for a summer theatre that was 25 ft long. We sourced the drum from a local pipe company (4 in 18ga aluminum tube if I recall). It worked like a champ. If you had a batten installed to tie the top of the drop to along with the pulley rigging, all you would need to do is tie on the desired new drop attach the bottom to the drum, and you would be able to go to town. Design and weight wise it may not be the best option for a school. Most likely it would need an adult to operate it.

This video somewhat shows operation, however I think the yale method of rigging (rope wrapped in a defined area on the outside of the drop) works better for a theatre.

Stuart R said:

And yes, it's definitely possible that it will get splashed with milk, or soup, or whatever - another reason to use something wipeable like this instead of soft goods!

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What about printing the bottom 3-4’ of the vinyl with just a solid color, even black? Some benefits here:
-a solid color can be touched up with commercially available spray paint
-the pretty bits are up out of the danger zone (kind of like a house having durable wainscoting below, and delicate wall paper above)
-one can leave it rolled 2-3’ down, and use it like a border during shows
-one could even have Velcro stitched to it, or snaps riveted on, and attach a soft good border when needed (like a portable movie screen does)

What, if any, is your budget for this project?