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The entertainment technology that lets Cirque du Soleil performers float on trapezes in Las Vegas shows might seem out of place in the Salt Lake Tabernacle.

It isn't.

But should you see a daring young man suspended from the Tabernacle rafters, he's probably dangling there to clean the pipes of the mighty Tabernacle organ, and it's unlikely he'll perform any breathtaking somersaults.

As a corollary to the seismic renovation that caused the venerable domed building on Temple Square to close last September, a new system of winches, pulleys and wires is being installed to raise and lower chandeliers and speaker clusters; to "fly" in giant lighting trusses for Tabernacle Choir performances; and to suspend the harnessed workers who clean the organ's intricate pioneer woodwork.

Though the engineers involved usually can be found creating special-effects equipment on stages from Las Vegas to Broadway, no prior project has posed as many challenges as this one. It requires intricate modifications for stringing cable lines through the curving space behind the Tabernacle's elliptical ceiling - all without altering the rawhide-lashed wooden trestlework supporting the roof. The tricky project has given workers a chance to admire 1860s architecture in a one-of-a-kind building.

"Given the time it was built, it was an absolute masterpiece and incredible achievement," said Bill Gorlin of McLaren Engineering, which handled engineering aspects of the suspension system. "I've been in amazing historic buildings, and the Mormon Tabernacle can stand nose to nose with any of the great historic buildings of the country, as far as I'm concerned."

Nathan Wells, project manager for Stage Technologies, the Nevada-based company that designed and supervised installation of the Tabernacle's production technology, was particularly impressed by the longevity and durability of the fabled rawhide strapping. Pioneers applied "green" rawhide to steamed wooden planks, so that as the rawhide shrunk and cured, it would tightly bind the wooden rafters.

"It was quite impressive," Wells said. "That rawhide was still holding up, and still very strong - effectively like a steel band. . . . It's kind of a shame more people aren't able to see the woodwork. It's all very well done. Many people, but especially carpenters, would appreciate the attention to detail and level of complexity that went into that building."

The Tabernacle's curved "attic" is tall enough to allow workers to stand, Wells said, and ruggedly beautiful. But working there posed daunting challenges. Fears that construction might spark a fire in the aged wooden structure meant workers were forbidden from using the usual tools and techniques of their trades.

In a typical installation, spark-producing grinders are in frequent use, and blowtorches speed the job of attaching sheaves - grooved pulleys for routing cable - onto steel support members.

"For Cirque du Soleil, you'd just weld the sheaves into place to get them in the right place, and off you go," Wells said.

Not in the Tabernacle. Custom-machined brackets were bolted in place, with strict attention to preserving the work of 19th-century pioneers. Though steel beams and "wraps" were installed in vulnerable areas for seismic reinforcement, the original structure was barely altered.

"In places, they backed up some of the strapping with steel bands, but in most places, it's still the original leather strapping," Wells said. "Everyone had to understand that it was a priority to maintain as much of that original structure as possible."

Making the cables flow around the pioneer woodwork required extra tilting and swiveling adjustments, adding complexity to an already difficult job, Wells said, but the result is a safe, efficient system for moving lights to precise positions; lowering chandeliers and speakers for maintenance; and cleaning hard-to-reach spots on the massive cabinetry and pipes of the Tabernacle organ.

Representatives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints declined to be interviewed for this story, as did companies involved in the seismic aspects of the project. But Gorlin, a structural engineer, offered eyewitness observations on work done to make the Tabernacle safer in case of a major earthquake.

The network of wooden beams that supports the Tabernacle roof is more earthquake-resistant by nature than more brittle structures, Gorlin said.

"Wood has a lot of flexibility, and can absorb more shock, so it has certain advantages," he said, "though I don't think the pioneers knew the Salt Lake Valley was subject to earthquakes."

The renovation will stabilize the Tabernacle by "adding supplemental framing and reinforcing bars to walls and roof," according to the Web site of Jacobsen Construction, the main contractor on the project. Such precautions are warranted.

Gary Christensen, hazards program manager for the Utah Geological Survey, said, "In a scenario of a Wasatch Fault earthquake, [Salt Lake City's downtown] is in an area of high ground motion." It's one reason the City-County Building received seismic strengthening and the state Capitol is undergoing seismic renovation now.

But those buildings needed reinforcement independent of seismic issues, simply because of their age, Christensen said. Although the same could be true of the Tabernacle, it could have certain advantages over other historic buildings in an earthquake.

The Tabernacle is expected to reopen next March, when it will resume its role as Utah icon and performance home to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. As in the past, groups of tourists probably will delight in standing at the back of the hall as a pin is dropped at the pulpit. With luck, they still will hear it land.

The Tabernacle's remarkable qualities and history were noted as the new LDS Conference Center neared completion in October 1999, when the LDS Church's general conference was held there for the last time.

Gordon B. Hinckley, president of the church, spoke of memorable events that transpired beneath the 150-foot arch of the Tabernacle ceiling: funeral services for beloved leaders, speeches by U.S. presidents, words of LDS prophets, concerts of the Utah Symphony and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

"What a remarkable and useful building it has been," Hinckley added. "What great purposes it has served. I know of no other structure like it in all the world."

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CELIA R. BAKER can be reached at cbaker@sltrib.com or 801-257-8693. Send comments to religioneditor@sltrib.com.