Theatre Design & Technology - Oct 1969 - 31

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS (concluded)
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR MAKING A FIBERGLAS PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES: Wear goggles when sanding
MASK OR SHIELD
or grinding! If you let the glass harden in the mould too
Make the form from clay or mud (available as "non-firing long you may be in trouble, depending on how complex it
clay" from any artist or hobby supply store). Cover this with is. Take it out while it is still warm and flexible, but dry. In
a thin layer of vaseline (helps with removal of clay from fact, some post-forming is possible to improve design. A
mould later on) and set the clay on its plywood base into a mask may offer some problems. If there are many reverse
wooden box or place a shallow wooden frame 'around it. curves, split the mould in half with a band saw. Don't use
Pour quick setting plaster (e.g. Plaster of Paris)· to-a depth too much activator-if it gets very hot, turns brown or crackof 2" over the clay (enough to cover) and let set several les and smokes when hardening, you are using too much.
hours or overnight. Turn over and dig out the clay. Brush in- Especially use a smaller amount of activator in a solid castterior with "Mould Release" (available from fiberglas sup- ing over '/,' thick. If too much activator is used, the heat
pliers, buy in small amounts)-this closes the pores in the generated can be very intense. Note: THE SOLVENT USED
mould. Then a liberal coating of any paste-type floor wax FOR CLEANING HANDS, BRUSHES, ETC. OR FOR REMOVwill aid in getting the glass out of the mould. With a ING RESIN FROM VARIOUS SURFACES IS ACETONE. THIS
cheap paint brush, cover mould with a liberal coating of IS HIGHLY FLAMMABLE: DO NOT SMOKE!
resin (already mixed with activator). Take a handful of
PRICES:
strand and, constantly dipping the brush in the resin, tamp
General Resin
$2 5.00 /5 gal. or $9.00/ gal. with
the glass into the mould about 1 /8" all over-a bit thicker
activator
at the edges. Make certain there are no air bubbles left.
$ 9.00/ gal. with activator
Clear Moulding Resin
Use lots of resin, work quickly and don't worry about getting
Activator.
$ 1.60/2 oz. or $4.40/16 oz.
messy-it can't be avoided, although plastic gloves can be
Chopped Strand
$ 0.75/lb. in 45 lb. lot
worn. The thicker areas will set up first. Watch for a slight
Cloth (heavy 40 oz.)
$ 3.28/yd. (38" wide)
greenish, brownish tinge to appear in the glass. Remove
Cloth (medium 10 oz.) $ 2.95/yd. (38" wide)
when still a bit flexible. The excess can be trimmed off
Cloth (fine 6 oz.)
$ 2.00/yd. (38" most common)
with large tin snips or a band saw. A band saw works well
Mould Release
$ 2.00/half gallon
when glass is hard, but use an old blade (keep one aside
Acetone
$ 1.95/gal.
for this purpose). An electric grinder and/or sander can be
Poly-glass putty
$ 7.00/gal.
used for the final trim and polish. Don't worry if you start to
Insta-foam
$ 5.50/ can
itch (it will only last for a week) but wear goggles. Scrub
surface well to remove any wax or the paint will not stick. NOTE: Life expectancy of liquids is 6-8 months, if kept
tightly closed.

New Building Code for Theatre Structures
in the City of New York
The City of New York, in the month of
November, 1968, enacted a new Building
Code, including provisions for the construction of all types of assembly buildings.
The new code, in relation to theatres for
performing arts introduces some fresh approaches which allow for a greater flexibil ity in planning.
Notably the emphasis in the code has been
placed on safety to life to a much greater
degree than the concern for property damage. In this regard the emphasis has been
placed upon the desirability of being able
to empty an assembly room where panic
might occur, within an approximate maximum of 3 minutes. Recognition has also
been given to the existence of much improved flameproofing for the soft and the
hard materials used for scenic requirements,
as well as the improvements made in electrical wiring and lighting instruments.
Significantly the usual requirement for a
safety curtain between the audience and the
performance area has been eliminated but it
must be strongly emphasized that this does
not imply an ability to el iminate this safety
curtain unless other provisions are made for
the safety of the audience.
This new New York City Code for assembly
structures was written in consultation with
Ben Schlanger, Consulting Architect, and
much assistance in this endeavor was given
by the Building Code Committee of the

mIIT:J THEATER DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

United States Institute For Theatre Technology. Some of the safety requirements
written into this code which led to the
elimination of the safety curtain, include
the following:
(a)

Flameproofing of
chair upholstery.

auditorium seat

(b) Automatic shut-down of auditorium
air exhaust with manual override
control for panic situations.
(c)

Increased mechanical air exhaust
from stage performing areas, also
with automatic and manual controls.

(d) Curtain line deluged sprinklers and
general sprinklers over all performing
areas.
(e)

Requirement for control panel in appropriate position on stage where th e
automatic and manual controls can
be observed and acted upon when
necessary.

(f)

The requirements for a maximum
travel distance in an auditorium from
a given seat to an exit, not to exceed 85' and that this distance
would have to be diminished under
a system of penalties which would
be applied if the travel from a given
position to an exit is made more
difficult.

OCTOBER,1969

(g) The amount of exits from an auditorium is based on a reduced credit
for the number of people in the
auditorium allotted to a unit of exit
width. (Unit of exit width equals
22".) This allowance has been reduced to 50 persons for any assembly room in which scenery is
used. (Note that in assembly rooms
where scenery is not used this
allowance is increased to 80 persons and that the maximum travel
distance is increased to 100 feet).
After several years of study and meetings
with many persons and organizations concerned, it became possible to enact this
code because it not only provided for greater
safety in theatres, but also at the same
time allowed for the design and use of almost any philosophy or discipline that could
be used for the live performing arts. This
flexibility is not allowed for by most building codes because they are patterned after
the single presentation philosophy of the
proscenium theatre only.
Pending the re-writing of many new building codes throughout the world, this new
New York City Code is already being used
as an advisory code in many communities
that seek to and are able to adopt an improved building code for theatres.

Ben Schlanger

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Oct 1969