PRO on the Go Video: Jobsite Journal: State Theatre

Cindy Friedmann of The Dependable Painting Company talks about the challenges and the coatings that ensured success on this high-profile restoration job at the historic State Theatre.

See more videos

Video Transcription:

There's a renaissance taking place in downtown Cleveland and the restoration of the Playhouse Square's five historic theaters is a big part of it.

In one of the final phases of the project, Evergreen Architectural Arts of New York and the dependable painting company of Cleveland joined forces to bring the State Theater back to its former glory.

We caught up with Cindy Friedman of the dependable painting company by phone to talk about the challenges of this high-profile project.

The biggest challenge that we faced was the time frame for the project.

The theater itself needed to be restored in two months.

That meant that the entire theater needed scaffolding, including a dance floor at the top so we could reach the dome.

Using forensic and archival research, Evergreen designed a palette of 15 colors appropriate to the historic theater.

Before the painting glazing and gilding could be done, major plaster repairs were needed and over 60 decorative molds had to be cast.

In addition, the concrete floor below the seats had to be cleaned, prepped and painted along with the trim, columns and walls.

We use Emerald paint on the majority of the job.

It is a wonderful product.

It flows well and covers well.

We also use Pro Industrial Precatalyzed Epoxy on the trim.

In our opinion, that is one of the best paints that Sherwin-Williams manufactures.

On the concrete floor, Armorseal Tread-Plex water based Acrylic provided a durable, non-skid coating that was easy to apply.

Sherwin-Williams has been a great partner.

The dependable painting company is very proud to be working on this project.

We have worked with Evergreen Studios before, and we love working with them.

Playhouse Square Foundation is a wonderful owner and we have worked with them directly quite a bit as well, so this was a natural fit.

With the State Theatre finish, the companies move next to the final phase of the Playhouse Square project:

The Ohio Theatre, next door.

But that's a story for another day.