Sheetrock City!

Here are some updates from around the construction site in the last few days! Houston's generally dry weather recently has allowed a lot of the exterior work - both roofing and brick cladding - to move forward.

 

Yes, the brick work on the curved section is complete! Here is the very last brick to be installed (on the wall next to the curved section).

Next, new exit doors will be installed in the curved section and new windows will be placed all along the front of the building. The existing front doors remain where they are.

On the inside, the installation of insulation and gypsum board (commonly known by one brand name, "Sheetrock") is happening everywhere.

(above, the auditorium looking northwest, with the Classroom/Rehearsal Room stage opening on the upper right; below, the West Lobby looking south)

 

(below, the Green Room and the door to Dressing Room #1 on the right; below, inside Dressing Room #2)

(above, the Front Stair that is adjacent to the Lobby; below, the Technical Booth looking south)

 

This shot out of the Technical Booth window shows a very important item that has also been installed this past week: AIR DUCTS. Our new central air conditioning and heating systems will make for a much more comfortable experience for audience, actors and staff alike.

Finally, last week, our general contractor, Arch-Con, hosted a wonderful "Topping Off" barbeque luncheon for the construction crew, MST staff and board members in the auditorium. On tall building construction, the "topping off" often celebrates the reaching of the highest point of the structure and is marked by a tree branch. Since our exterior and roof are almost done, we thought it was an appropriate time to celebrate a little!

A lot of work has happened since the last post!

The construction site is a beehive of activity today. We have crews (a) working to finish the roof, (b) starting the brick laying on the curved section, and (c) pouring concrete!

To create a slightly lower floor for the stage so its "real" floor can be built up with wood, we needed to build in a very slight incline as the lobby floor turns the corner into the West Lobby. (The new slab on the north side of the building was poured to be at this new height)

  (above, before new concrete and, below, after)

This was also done in the new light lock that serves as the main entrance into the auditorium. (below)

Thus, all of our floors - old and new - now match up and we'll soon begin to build up the stage floor as interior work continues.

Bricks have been delivered, the scaffold has been erected, and the fascinating work of the bricklayer has started. New brick gets joined to old, as we both re-purpose this section of the building and work to maintain our well-known streetscape.

The Stage Support Office is framed out, and the windows will be installed soon. As noted before, this will be a space for production meetings, board committee meetings, or for pre-show/post-show events.

Elsewhere, electrical conduits are now snaking their way through the walls and holes are being made (see below) for duct work.

The duct work signals a big change for MST that many people don't know about: for the first time, the whole building will be centrally air-conditioned! We used to depend on three very over-taxed window air conditioners in the old Green Room and Dressing Rooms. Actors wearing period clothing will be gratefully saluting those new air ducts for years to come!

On the Rice Boulevard side of the building, the plaster work has been completed and you can really see how the new building takes its place on the block.

The holes you see are for roof scuppers which will direct rain water into soon-to-be-installed gutters down the side of the building.

Coming up: more bricks and interior work!

There are a number of ways to support our capital campaign. Be sure to check the updated list of sponsorship/naming opportunities on the MST capital campaign page on the website. Thank you!