The improvement and modernization of Lawrence will continue this summer with certain projects beginning immediately after students leave for summer break. These projects are scheduled for completion before students — most notably, athletes — return in early August.
The modernization of Trever and Plantz bathrooms represent the largest project for the summer. Both residence halls’ bathrooms are being completely remodeled at a cost of roughly one million dollars per dorm.
The group showers in those bathrooms are being demolished, with individual showers being put in their place, similar in fashion to the bathrooms in the newly opened Landis Hall.
The front desks at Trever and Plantz — as part of a continuing effort to modernize those areas in every dorm — will be remodeled, with greater space around the desk, increased accessibility and space for planned digital signage.
In addition, sprinklers and alarm systems are being added to 10 of the smaller houses.
Facility Services will repair a portion of the cement on campus, with those sections in the worst state of disrepair being attended to first. The replacement of the Seeley G. Mudd Library’s steps over the course of this term is evidence of this effort.
Two to three hundred thousand dollars will be spent on roofing of buildings on campus. Stansbury Theatre’s roof, after sustaining wind damage this spring, is in need of repair, though some repairs to the damage have been made already.
Stansbury Theatre has already begun a major multi-year renovation that will continue this summer, be put on hold for the majority of the academic year, and then begin again in April of 2012.
The theatre, built in 1954, has not been changed since its construction. Theatres in its style are no longer made, having been outdated by new techniques and ideas concerning theatre, marking this update as much needed.
Over the summer, new dimmer racks, a lighting control booth and lighting positions over the stage will be added to the theatre. “[These changes] are really important to how the show looks under light but when you walk into the room; no one would know because it’s all up in the walls,” remarked Timothy X. Troy, professor of theatre arts and the J. Thomas and Julie Esch Hurvis Professor of Theatre and Drama
While the improvement of the lights is a significant upgrade to the theatre, the majority of the renovation, paid for by the university budget, will occur next spring.
One of the most significant changes to Stansbury is the attempt to change the relationship between actors and audience. At present, the seating in Stansbury does not allow the audience to see the floor of the stage. With the renovations, the seats will be elevated, much like a sports stadium, to raise the audience above the stage — improving sound quality, as actors are projecting forward rather than down below them, and allowing the floor of the stage to be utilized as a design element.
With these improvements, Troy hopes to modernize the theatre while also improving the quality of Freshman Studies lectures – which are typically held in Stansbury Theatre but have been given in Memorial Chapel due to the large size of the present freshman class.