CEAC-2018-11-November

“When you sit down you literally can’t see anything, so the
boards need to be on at all times,” Levron said.
Levron may develop two modes for the car: float mode
and street mode. During float mode, the vehicle will need
multiple people, including a driver near the floorboards and
actors at the top.
During street mode, the driver would take a seat that can
see over the dashboard.
“This model is the second attempt,” Levron said. “The first
one was too small and it was barely manageable, so this one
is much bigger but it is safer.”
Frank Lloyd Wright
Wisconsin Theater to Be Restored
“My youngest can’t wait to drive it,” Levron said.
Including thrusters, the vehicle’s dimensions reach 11 feet by
20 feet, Levron said.
Sometimes, Levron will work four to five hours a day on the
Landspeeder, others it will be between 10 and 12.
“It just depends on the amount of free time I have on my
hands on an average day,” Levron said. “Lately I have been
traveling a lot. That’s why we haven’t made much progress in
the past few weeks.”
The Landspeeder will be available for rent whenever people
need it for a negotiable price, but it is not for sale.
The goal is to have it as a float for Mardi Gras next year.
The Hillside Studio and Theater at Taliesin will begin an $867,000 restoration
next year. (Photo: © Jeff Dean)
SPRING GREEN, Wis. (AP) — A theater at Frank Lloyd Wright’s
800-acre Taliesin estate in Wisconsin will undergo an
$867,000, two-year restoration.
A $320,000 Save America’s Treasures grant from the National
Park Service, the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation and Taliesin
Preservation will be funding the restoration of the 120-yearold
Hillside Theatre, The Wisconsin State Journal reported.
Public performances are held at the theater from May
through early October.
“There’s all kinds of uses for that theater. It’s just elemental
to our living,” said Minerva Montooth, a longtime resident
at Taliesin and the director of social events.
The project will address storm water runoff issues that have
compromised the building’s foundation and exterior sandstone
walls. It will also upgrade the building’s heating and
electrical systems, the entry foyer, the audience space and
the performance area. A green room, bathrooms and storage
space will be added to the basement.
The restoration work will maintain the footprint and cane
marks Wright left in the grout at the entryway to the foyer.
The project will allow for more events on the property and
bring in more people, said Ryan Hewson, the preservation
manager of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, which owns
Taliesin.
“This helps us with our next projects because we’re able to
bring more people here,” Hewson said. “We can springboard
from that and they can experience this the way it’s supposed
to be experienced instead of just coming here for a tour.
We want people to come every summer and visit us multiple
times.”
Work on the project will begin next year.
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