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The orchestra is carpeted in
<br />Astroturf, almost the color of the
<br />curtain. Two structures are installed
<br />in ' rchestra; they are level not
<br />ac, iodating to the normal slant
<br />of the floor. One is a conversation
<br />circle into which drops a Tiffany
<br />lamp on a 20 -foot chain. The other is
<br />a big square planter that sprouls a
<br />tall tree similar to a rubber tree and
<br />pots of chrysanthemums. Daylight
<br />pours in generously from a I rge
<br />greenhouse, ceiling center. Its floor
<br />was removed and it was installel in
<br />the roof as a skylight. Bare pros en-
<br />hun light bulbs and footlights provide
<br />additional light.
<br />BACKSTAGE FEATURES the ar-
<br />chitects' private offices. Converted
<br />from performers' dressing rooms,
<br />they measure a spare 7 by 9 feet.
<br />Here the professionals demonstrate
<br />what can be accomplished in nearly
<br />no space at all.
<br />Donald Flock, an inveterate sa lor,
<br />has converted his tiny quarters ii no a
<br />captain's cabin. It is all wooden, with
<br />high step -in hatchway, seaweed pok-
<br />ing up behind the brass portl ole,
<br />three kegs full of drawings, an I a
<br />caged green parrot. The "d ck"
<br />creaks and gives away a little to the
<br />step. Issues of Yachting maga iine
<br />and American Builder magazine vie
<br />for space on the bunk. On the wa I is
<br />a picture and legend entitled le-
<br />ments and. Practice of Rigging
<br />Seamanship 1794." A lantern h ngs
<br />fr brass chain over Flock's d sk.
<br />A • ::Jeri gallery gn the shelf a ova
<br />protects his pipe rack against to bu-
<br />lence. His office has the ceiling rap
<br />door.that leads to the stage.
<br />THE SEAWEED AT his porthole
<br />emanates from a real greenhouse
<br />that opens off Richard Selleg's office.
<br />Selleg, city . planner and lands ape
<br />architect, has Astroturf on the fl r,
<br />a white brick wall and a cedar bc and
<br />wall as foil for his live plants. rhe
<br />greenhouse is a rotational home for
<br />fresh flowers and plants used at the
<br />base of the rubber tree in' the
<br />orchestra. In winter the architects
<br />plan to use it as a solarium for
<br />conferences.
<br />Next is Paul Stevens' office, w ich
<br />resembles a monk's windowless dell.
<br />He sawed in two a handsom ly-
<br />carved wooden door. Each half drops
<br />from the wall on a leather stral, to
<br />create a double desktop for him. He
<br />uses a square of glass over the
<br />carving to give a smooth wri 'ng
<br />surface.] A wall wine rack holds lls
<br />of blueprints and an occasional b tle
<br />of wine.
<br />-A- RAW BRICK w
<br />erstwhile dressing room
<br />brown, to match a snu
<br />sofa. A black fake fur covers the
<br />patch of floor. A plaster lath ceiling,
<br />a wooden bookcase, and a spiral wood
<br />sconce are accented by a brass desk
<br />stool. The only other accent is an
<br />earth -tone pot crammed with bril-
<br />liant orange strawflowers.
<br />The production department is en-
<br />sconced in the balcony. Eventually
<br />partner Guy Peterson will take the
<br />projection room, now a storage area,
<br />as his private nook. The upper
<br />balcony now houses three draftsmen
<br />and Peterson—all separated from
<br />one another,by opaque curtains. The
<br />lower balcony is growing . space for
<br />the drafting department.
<br />A conference room has been
<br />fashioned out of a portion of the
<br />orchestra. It is furnished with
<br />.rockers and a slate table; One wall is
<br />a chalk board.
<br />To the right of the entrance is the
<br />receptionist- secretary area. To the
<br />left is The Idle Hour Ltd. shop —ful-
<br />fillment of a longtime ambition of
<br />interior designer Frank Caruso.
<br />EVENTUALLY CARUSO will be
<br />interior consultant for the architects'
<br />model houses. In the shop he has
<br />assembled the work of several
<br />midwestern artists and craftsmen,
<br />along with choice antiques and gifts.
<br />Nola Colbert of Oak Park does
<br />custom wood carving, for .him. She
<br />also addresses Christmas cards in
<br />elegant script for $20 per 100.
<br />Barbara Fiedler creates paintings on
<br />wood for $1.25 to $15. Kathy Sund-
<br />strom drives from Iowa twice
<br />monthly to bring her pottery to the
<br />shop. Rita Dahlberg and Jann
<br />Sullivan of Oak Park collaborate on
<br />Christmas ornaments. Mrs. Sullivan
<br />also makes children's clothes, tagged
<br />"Original Mollies, and linen aprons.
<br />Paintings are provided by Mary
<br />Amberg of Beverly Shores, Ind., and
<br />Ethel Scott of Hoffman Estates. Sena
<br />Green of St. Charles hooks rugs and
<br />hall runners to order.. A 54 -inch by
<br />27 -inch rug costs $7.95.
<br />TOYS, CARNIVAL GLASS, and
<br />hand puppets are. displayed on old
<br />stage stairs and inside the ornate
<br />glass candy counter from the former
<br />theater lobby. Velvet - encased ropes
<br />that used to hold back theater crowds
<br />when the feature changed, now serve
<br />to block off the shop except during its
<br />business hours: 10 to 6 Monday,
<br />Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Satur.
<br />day; Sunday, l to 5:
<br />'1ne scene at the Idlehour these
<br />days is relaxed. Attired in sweaters,
<br />sneakers, open collars, and slacks,
<br />the architects enjoy the backstage
<br />embellishments of sink, refrigerator,
<br />stove, and shower. [The shower is in
<br />"Gents." "Ladies" bas no such
<br />embellishment.] As Stevens says,
<br />clients find the Idlehour a nice place
<br />to visit. Actually, you could live there.
<br />Betty Taylor
<br />One of the architects' offices is a windowless cubicle —all black
<br />and brown except for a pot of orange strawf lowers. That's half
<br />of a drop -down desk'made from a carved door, covered with
<br />glass for a smooth writing surface.
<br />The Idle Hour Ltd. shop, in a corner of the thea-
<br />ter, offers antiques and gifts hand - crafted by
<br />midwestern artists. In the background is the
<br />ornate candy counter from the theater's lobby.
<br />Another office is a vignette of a captain's quar-
<br />ters— wooden overhead, hatchway, and bunk,
<br />and even a porthole. This, as the other offices,
<br />is babkstage, in a one -time dressing room.
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