Technical Design Solutions for Theatre

Robert Coleman

Spot-Welding Scrim with Sobo®

While working as TD for the Opera Festival of New Jersey, I hung the company’s black scrim late in load-in to prevent accidental damage, only to find a series of half-dollar sized holes like the one shown in Figure 1 at the right. Time and money precluded scrim replacement, and although we made a determined attempt, no one on the crew proved capable of professional-quality reweaving. We also vainly tried two other approaches — sewing the holes shut, and stitching patches over them. All three techniques were tediously slow, and our repairs, while better-looking than the holes, were not satisfactory. Still, lacking better alternatives, we persevered in our efforts.

One afternoon, Stephan Olson, one ...