Planning a wedding can be stressful. Planning a backyard theater? Well, it was a nice diversion for Matthew Katz. “I did not build this theater instead of planning my wedding,” he says. Both Matthew and his bride-to-be are in the arts, so they put aside downtime to plan the big event. “I wanted a small project that I could do that was not wedding-centric.”

When it came to the wedding, he had a planning partner in his now-wife Rose. For the theater, his buddy Dan Volk filled the sidekick role. Dan’s father owns Alfred Station, NY’s Tinkertown Hardware , so he brought a lot of building skills to the project.

The project was sort of a no-brainer for the two, given the lack of theaters in the area. “We live in a rural area and we don’t have multiplexes, and the few movie theaters we have are small, cramped, poor sound and aren’t really worth going to,” Matthew says. There are a lot of drive-ins (about five within an hour drive), though. However, instead of packing friends and family into the car in search of the theater experience, Matthew and Dan made a plan for one in the backyard. BackyardTheater.com helped solidify their thoughts, and gave them some extra inspiration.

The end result is a pretty simple operation. Matthew dug out an old DVD player, borrowed surround sound equipment from a friend who wasn’t using it, and purchased a fairly basic projector. The screen is new, however, and homemade—out of PVC and some Dazian Trapeze Plus screen material. The two took about a month to draw up screen plans, cost projections, a materials list, and collect the various parts. After that, the actual build took two afternoons. “It could have been done in one day, but we took our time,” Matthew says. “I believe that the only tools that we needed were a sharpie, a measuring tape, a rubber mallet and a miter saw.”

That screen measures 8.5 feet tall and 20 feet wide. “We focused on making as big a screen as we could with the materials available and the cost at a minimum,” Matthew says. “In fact, I’m pretty sure that our screen is bigger than all the ones in our immediate area. My wife and I did go to one recently to see ‘Wall-E’ at a local theater and after the show we agreed that our screen is much bigger.” Despite the monster size, the screen gets an extra boost from its 3-foot legs. The seating is pretty open, but the best spot is probably in the middle of the action created by the speakers.

“Cheap or free” was a goal for the project. Of course, there were standards, such as 5.1 sound and at least a 480p picture. Building the screen was a task, but it also fit into the budget. “We love the challenge of building something wonderful, ridiculous and tons of fun,” Matthew says. “We are just a couple of family guys in our late 20s early 30s, and we made something we are proud of that is fun for everyone.”

In between showings, Matthew breaks down the whole setup, to save on weather wear-and-tear. “To carry out the screen parts, assemble them, stretch the screen, hoist and tie it down is about 45 minutes,” he says. “Then to wheel out the electronics [which live on an A/V cart], get the power run to the cart, place and hook up the front speakers takes about 15 minutes.”

Like all do-it-yourselfers, Matthew wishes he could tweak a few items. He would think about a rear-projection screen, as well as a projector with a longer throwing distance. He is extremely pleased with the setup, though, and that includes its lack on high definition. Matthew says that he loves that high-def when it comes to his indoor plasma screen, but it’s not really necessary to enjoy this great outdoor experience. 

Matthew has dubbed the setup “Two Hound Dogs’ Theater,” after his Basset Hounds, Flash and Sophie. “It also refers to Dan and me,” he adds. And what does his bride think about his labor of love? “Well, she thinks I’m crazy, but she didn’t need the theater to prove that.”

Quick Hits:
Location: Almond, NY
Year Completed: 2007
Room Size: 40 x 30 feet
Length of Project: 30 Days
Total Cost: $740

About the Author:
Rachel Cericola - Contributing Writer

Over the past 15 years, Rachel Cericola has covered entertainment, web and technology trends. Check her out at www.rachelcericola.com.