An interesting experiment

Huon Valley Theatre has been going since 1988, and has had its flies since then. We have four or five, all of which have been painted over so many times that they are heavy, cracking and almost impossible to repaint now. New flies are, for us, prohibitively expensive (specially as they all need replacing). For our christmas pantomime we are trying something different. Instead of using two flies, we are constructing five panels (each 1.5m wide and 4m high) that interlock to form a backdrop that's 7.5m wide and 4m high. Each will be pivotted in the centre and can be rotated about this axis, so that we can have one scene painted on the front side and another on the back, giving us the equivalent of two flies at a fraction of the cost. At the moment the panels are being painted for the pantomime . . . so it won't be long before they're installed and we can try them out. If this system works, we expect to construct another set of five panels. This will give us the equivalent of four flies. If it doesn't work . . . then we have to rethink our ideas.