Congratulations to the Adler Theatre for its award winning marquee!
The marquee, installed in 2018 with the help of donors to defray two-thirds of the $335,000 cost, recently received a second place award in the 2019 Signshop competition by Sign of the Times magazine.
The marquee, designed by Wagner Electric Sign Company of Elyria, Ohio, received the award in the “Best Original Design and Fabrication, Illuminated by a large shop” division.
The new marquee hearkens back to when the Adler Theatre opened in 1931. When the City approached Wagner, the goal was to go back to the original look yet consider new technology with electronic message centers. The designer first constructed a 1/32 scale model of the marquee to show the project’s vision.
The marquee uses design elements from the Art Deco era as well as drawing on the theatre’s interior architectural accents. Colors of the marquee are traditional to Art Deco while including gold leaf.
The marquee also has a large blade sign, engineered and modified structural steel to accommodate the new structure. The blade is multi-layered and has LED strip lighting for the flash and chase system that goes from bottom to top.