The Stromness town hall is used for concerts and plays. I’ll list some of the facilities for putting on plays and the facilities the town hall has.
The stage
The stage can be assembled from flat pack units. The normal acting area is 8 units wide, 5 deep.
Under the organ, there are steps with a small mark showing the centre. If you use this as a centre line, the rostra are flush against the wall stage left, and have an inch gap stage rights. Stage left, the gap is about 1-2 millimetres wide.
There is some special processing under the organ because of the steps down, and there are some cut outs you need to use to get it to work. There are cut outs for 7 rostra wide and 8 rostra wide.
Stage right there is an area about 1m50 wide and about 3m long, the “stage corner”. This has a curtain each on both open sides. This stage corner leads to a corridor to the kitchen used as the dressing room.
Stage left is a small room with a grand piano (expensive) which is used to give concerts.
Stage left is the “technical room” which contains speakers, microphones and other technical equipment used by other users of the town hall, for example the Baptist’s church.
Treads (steps)
The town hall has two sets of treads.
The drama club has >1 set of treads in their store. They also have a small set of treads for getting from the stage into the piano room.
Cyclorama
The drama club have 2 white cloths which hang on a wire 12 ft off the ground between the balconies. It is useful to use black string to hold up the wire, through an eye on the organ and tie to the back wall.
Masking
The drama club have cutouts with black legs(cloth) which fit ( with a screw) under the balconies, stage left, and right.
They also have blacks which hang from stretchy curtain wire to mask the piano room. There is also wire from the corner of the tech room to the church wall – and a black to hang off it.
Normal Lights
If you come from the kitchen into the hall, there are lights on the wall to the right.
| dimmer | dimmer | dimmer | 3= Roof uplights |
| 1= upstairs wall lights stage left | 2= big hanging lights on the ceiling | 1= upstairs wall lights stage right | 0= Under balcony |
Stage lights
There are stage lights belonging to the town hall. One set in the balconies on either side of the stage, and two sets on scaffolding poles in the upstairs balcony. There are 3-4 lanterns on each station.
There is a lighting board at the back of the town hall. The board is a jester 88.
Sound system
There is a sound system in locked cupboard at the back of the town hall. The key is in the keypress ( key number 3).
There are 2 big speakers each with a monopole stand. These can be plugged into the town hall sound system.
There are also speakers under the balcony, and microphones on the balcony pointing at the stage.
Screen
At the back of the stage is a screen which is used by the film club. It can be positioned vertically, and the screen rolled up and down.
There is a projector in the middle of the balcony with connections down to the back of the room
Video feedback system
The drama club have a camera which can be placed in the middle of the balcony, next to the projector. This has connections to the television in the kitchen.
Photos
Stage
Showing the 8 *5 rostra, the white cyc. treads onto the stage, screen, curtains masking stage area.
Looking from stage to auditorium.
Note the lighting bars up in the balcony ( Scaffolding poles)
The circular disk on the front of the balcony has a projector in it.
A scaffolding bar can be put on front of the balcony to hang lights on.
Note the lights in the balcony.
Stage right masking
Stage left
Showing masking under balcony, the piano room, masking of the technical room ( on thin white curtain wire) and round the corner
Stage left masking on curtain wire.
Keys
You can collect keys from the community centre.
Not all bunches of keys have all the keys.
For example the “usual” set of keys do not include access to the piano store, the piano, or the technical store next door to the piano.
At the back of the hall is the “sound area” with the sound system behind a glass door. The key for this is in the keypress.
There is a key to the toilets in the key press and on the keyrings.
The lighting board does not have a key.
Blinds
Side windows have blinds you can roll up and down.
For the windows besides the organ, in the cupboard under the stairs, stage right, are two switches one for up, and one for down.
ColinPaice 