 Architects including Thom Weeks and Jennifer Stanley led renovations of the Stanley into a live theatre . Weeks was initially disappointed with the state of the pre @-@ renovated theatre , which looked " pretty tired " with its aged orange walls and sticky , soft drink @-@ stained carpets . However , by the time the renovations were completed , and the actors and musicians were getting ready to first perform in it , there was a general feeling of excitement about the theatre . Renovations included expansion of the lobby , reconfiguration of the balcony , an expansion of the stage to twice its original size , a new twenty @-@ five metre fly tower from which to raise and lower scenery , new dressing rooms , a trap room , an electrical room and a green room backstage , a reduction of the number of seats from 1 @,@ 216 to 650 , a crush bar in the old projection booth , a section cut out of the theatre 's dome to use for spotlights , and a full restoration of the theatre 's gold @-@ leafed plaster decorations . As a result of these renovations , in 1999 the theatre was awarded a City of Vancouver Heritage Award , as well as an IES International Illumination Design Award . 
