The new velour cloth replaces one that was in place since 1917.
RUMFORD – A new, luxurious dark green velour curtain graces the stage of the historic municipal auditorium.
The curtain, complete with gold-fringed, box-pleated valance, replaces a worn and faded stage curtain that has been up almost since the municipal building was constructed in 1917.
Town Manager Robert Welch said the curtain, which cloaks a 32-by-18-foot, maple-trimmed stage, cost about $4,500. Funds came from the building’s capital improvement account.
“The auditorium looks real good now. I hope to get more interest in using it,” he said.
The flame resistant curtain was installed last week by a New Jersey specialty company associated with the curtain provider, Marietta Drapery and Window Covering Co. of Marietta, Ga.
The curtain is the latest upgrade to the 800-seat auditorium.
The ceilings and walls were painted last year and an interior fire escape constructed about 10 years ago.
The auditorium’s next improvement will the seating, Welch said.
He is looking into buying new chairs for the floor-level section of the hall sometime within the next year or two, which would require the purchase of between 400 and 500 seats.
He hasn’t estimated a purchase cost yet, but he knows it will be high.
Although the auditorium, including the balcony, can seat 800 people, the hall is certified for 500 because only one fire escape is inside the building. Two others are located outside and don’t meet safety requirements.
The auditorium and stage had been used for a variety of entertainment decades ago, as well as for town meetings. In recent years, local high school proms are sometimes so often held there, as are special meetings and an occasional play. A church uses the hall each Sunday.
The hall has many artistic characteristics, and Welch wants to see the auditorium used more frequently. He said the town is trying to find a theatrical troupe that would use the stage, former dressing rooms and other features of the hall.
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