St. George Theatre
Staten Island, NY

The Saint George Theater, built in 1928, stands as the crown jewel of Staten Island. Designed by architect Eugene DeRosa and Staten Island resident James Whitford, this 2,800-seat theater opened its doors in December 1929. The interior, a masterpiece by Nestor Castro, showcases Spanish and Italian Baroque styles in all their ornate glory. Dozens of elaborate, boldly polychrome lighting fixtures adorn the space, including the magnificent grand chandelier, whose sheer size posed a significant restoration challenge.

After decades of neglect, our company was entrusted with restoring the St. George Theatre's light fixtures to their original splendor. The grand chandelier, a true centerpiece, presented one of the project's greatest challenges. Weighing several tons, it could not be removed from the theater. Our team worked from two tiers of scaffolding to restore and rewire this fixture in place.

Restoring the St. George Theatre required a delicate balance of preserving the original artistry while ensuring the renovations could withstand the test of time. Our team took a "heritage conservation" approach, striving to retain or replicate historical elements wherever possible.

For the grand chandelier and other fixtures, we carefully removed and cataloged every piece of glass. Flickinger Glassworks reproduced any broken or missing pieces, matching them as closely as possible to the originals. This involved creating vinyl stencils and applying them to the new glass to meticulously replicate the hand-painted patterns. We treated the metalwork to remove rust and corrosion before refinishing it. Finally, we rewired all the fixtures with modern electrical components.

The reopening of the St. George Theatre marked a crowning achievement for the Staten Island community, rivaling the grandeur of many New York City theaters.