Travels of a Scenic Artist and Scholar: Thomas G. Moses and His Scenic Designs for the Oakland Scottish Rite

Copyright © 2025 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

Tens of thousands of historic opera houses were constructed between 1850 and 1950. Of that number, a significant percentage was lost to fire and other natural, or manmade, disasters. Many of the remaining structures fell prey to building renovations, repurposing, and demolition. Thousands were gutted, transformed into department stores, apartment complexes, and office spaces. Others were demolished to make room for parking facilities. Landmarks that stood the test of time, surviving economic downturns and world wars, have recently been sold across the country, with their contents dispersed or destroyed. Most painted illusion for these stages was ephemeral. Stage scenery was seldom expected to last beyond a season, let alone a decade. Remarkably, Sosman & Landis guaranteed their work for twelve years, yet some of their painted scenes have lasted well over a century and are still in use.

It is remarkable that the Oakland Scottish Rite theater not only has it original stage machinery and scenery that was delivered in 1927, but also has remained in the hands of the organization that conceived and built it . Its proposed sale places not only the historically significant structure, as well as the culturally significant theatre contents in jeopardy. Extant examples of American scenic art and a unique stage system are in danger of being lost. It is very rare to encounter any first-generation stage scenery in an historic venue, let alone the original scenic designs and other supplemental primary source material. The original artists’ memoirs, scrapbook, scenic art brushes, and designs remain.

This post focusses on the scenic design for the Oakland Scottish Rite within the context of other projects completed by the artist between 1925 and 1929. However, I am going to provide a little context for Moses’ design based on his previous work at dozens of Scottish Rite Theaters.

Masonic projects were not only massive, but also very complicated to design. Each Scottish Rite Valley had their own theatrical interpretation for degree work. Although many drops were similar in composition and placement, unique requests were constantly requested of theatrical suppliers. Few Scottish Rite Masons were familiar with the intricacies of theatrical design and production beyond seeing degree work at other Scottish Rite Valleys or attending a local production. Masonic stage settings were designed to facilitate quick scene changes by amateur stagehands. The Masonic versions of olio drops were positioned downstage to facilitate upstage scene changes. These were just short scenes that provided the much need time to reset a stage. One of the best examples is a Sosman & Landis design described as “Tower of Cyrus.”

It depicts an exterior scene near the palace of King Cyrus and was often placed with the first set of stock scenes, lines 4-7. Here are several examples of this scene in a downstage position.

An antechamber in King Darius’ Palace functioned in the same was and was often hung from the first set of lines.

Another standard scene used for a downstage position was an architect’s room, an astronomer’s room, or generic classical interior. This setting was often based on information presented in the second degree and referred to as a “Middle Chamber” set.

Unfortunately, over time, these short scenes were cut. When the corresponding drops were no longer used, they were removed, often transferred to an upstage line. Over the years degree directors and/or degree teams changed the original drop order and removed crucial downstage drops that helped conceal scene changes. This ended up prolonging scene changes and necessitated larger stage crews. When membership declined, stage crews became much smaller. Small stage crews meant that large scene changes were too challenging, so entire degree productions were cut, citing the lack of backstage support. Yet, the original designs never required large Masonic stage crews. The design and placement of each drop was to support the seamless flow of degree work with minimal stagehands.

From the beginning of the design process, Moses worked with John McEwing to plan efficient scene changes for Scottish Rite degree work. In January 1927, John McEwing (1865-1932), a representative for the Oakland Scottish Rite, met Moses in Fort Scott, Kansas.

Their meeting was to examine a recent example of Moses’ scenic art work under stage lights and look at scenery placement. McEwing was Director of Work of the Oakland Scottish Rite Bodies. He was also a Past Master of Park Boulevard Lodge No. 568, advisor to the Oakland Chapter of De Molay, and a member of the Aahmes temple (Shrine). In addition to Masonic activities, McEwing also held memberships in both the Bohemian Club of San Francisco and Orpheus Club of Oakland. McEwing, an Honorary Inspector General, 33^rd, was scheduled to be the Grand Master of Ceremonies at the dedication of the new Scottish Rite Temple in Oakland.

During McEwing’s visit to the Fort Scott Scottish Rite, he examined a wraparound cyclorama for use with cut drops.  This facilitated quick scene changes during degree productions. The number of leg drops was reduced as the cyclorama masked the side stages. This sped up the time that it took to change some scenes. Moses designed dozens of cut drops to accompany a wraparound cyclorama for the Fort Scott Scottish Rite stage in Kansas. This practice was incorporated as a key element to the Oakland Scottish Rite scenery design.

Not every Scottish Rite stage could afford this luxury of a cyclorama and series of cut drops. Both were expensive and labor intensive, costing both time and money for the studio to produce. They also provided a unique look on stage, accentuating the painted illusion.  The use of cut drops and cycloramas transformed relatively shallow spaces into expansive vistas. The Temple Ruins setting for the Fifteenth Degree was especially effective and easy to set. Two men lowering cut drops in front of a cyclorama instantly transformed the space.

Of his 1927 trip to meet with John McEwing in Kansas, Moses wrote:

January 4^th.  I left for Fort Scott Kansas to meet John McEwing of Oakland, California who insists on seeing some of our finished work instead of models.  We arrived on time and soon got busy showing all the sets well lighted.  All the members helped and McEwing was well pleased, and I made it pretty plain that I wanted to spend the winter in California, especially Oakland.  New design to be submitted for each degree.

Some of the designs inspected by Ewing inspired a similar version for Oakland Scottish Rite theater. In many cases they were slightly altered, or elements combined for the new installation. For example, the basic design for the Mausoleum remains the same; only the color palette shifts from green marble to rose marble columns.

The same can be seen with the DeMolay tomb flat designed for each. The basic design concept remains constant, but more elements are added as the size of the Oakland Scottish Rite stage was much grander than that in Fort Scott, Kansas; almost four times the seating capacity. The festival palace for King Darius in the sixteenth degree used a series of cut drop, both leg and back to suggest an expansive visit beyond the upstage colonnade.

The scenic design utilizes the exact same placement of scenic elements for the foreground, middle ground, and background. The use of a colonnade cut drop was unique to Moses’ design for Fort Scott and Oakland. Previously, only an intricate cut drop was paired with standard leg drops and a solid back drop.

Some of Moses original designs from 1927 are at the Oakland Scottish Rite. They show the subtitle shift from design to final painting, especially when the interpretation is solely controlled by the creator. His designs also reflected current degree practices, as he attended Scottish Rite degrees while working in Oakland. Of his attendance at Scottish Rite meetings, he wrote that it provided “an idea of what they have been doing” without a proper stage.

In Moses’ memoirs, he explains how one scene influenced the next throughout the painting process in Oakland, writing, “The work has gone along very nicely.  I am giving it all the time necessary to produce a pleasing lot of drops.  One idea and finished drop suggests the next one and the result is good, even better than when we try to design all in the beginning and not have proper lighting of the scene.” Forty-three drops had been painted and hung for the Scottish Rite Reunion by Dec. 12, 1927. This meant all the lighting equipment was up and running. Moses intimately knew how well the drop reflected light; what worked and what didn’t. There is no question that position of the border lights and their effectiveness on the first 43 drops affected how he painted the next 42 drops. Moses was able to fine tune each design for the desired effect, something very rare. It meant subtitle shifts in color and overall composition.

The border lights at the Oakland Scottish Rite were referenced in a letter regarding the placement of the proposed boarder lights at the Scottish Rite theater in McAlester, OK. Moses was now representing the William Lemle Company at the old Sosman & Landis Studio, 417-419 South Clinton Street, Chicago. 1930 letterheads, listed Moses at “Art Director” for both William Lemle, Inc. and the National Theatre Supply Co. Moses listed his home office at 1525 Oak Street in Oakland, CA.  On August 19, 1930, Moses wrote: “Regarding the Blue Borders, they are to hang on the cable that supports the border lights, they are very light, and the additional weight means nothing. That is the way I have completed them at Oakland, and they are very satisfactory, because the Blue Board is used to mask any reflected light from the bottom, hanging fully 18 inches below the border light.”

The current stage lighting at the Scottish Rite Temple deviates from the original design in terms of placement and coloration. LED lighting fixtures have been placed on empty lines that are no longer masked by the blue borders (see image above).

Scenic elements were designed to partner with a specific stage lighting system with a limited color range. All the distemper drops were produced to be illuminated with red, blue, and white incandescent lighting. The selection and mixture of colors supported a metamorphosis on stage, allowing each scene to transition from a daytime to nighttime scene without compromising any portion of the painting. The was a standard theatrical practice in manufacturing and lighting scenic illusion on stage at the time.

 A significant portion of Moses’ designs for the Oakland Scottish Rite are also part of the Sosman & Landis Collection in the Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas, Austin. They include designs for drops, flats, profile pieces, and other scenic elements.

For example, the entire Crucifixion design created by Thomas Moses for the Oakland Scottish Rite depicts the complexity of a scene constructed of two large flats, a cut drop and cyclorama.

The use of tri-fold flats as side masking was unique to the Oakland Scottish Rite. In many cases, it was impractical to fill the side stages with framed scenic pieces as they were too bulky to store. Most Scottish Rites stored single, or hinged, flat in a lofted area, often situated above the stage-left wings. Oakland had an excessive amount of space for flat storage, including an entire box interior set, complete with ceiling panel. Twelve flats could be quickly lashed together to construct an interior setting. The Oakland Scottish Rite box set is a rarity, if not the only example in the United States. Theatres often purchased box sets, by Masonic stages did not.

Moses did not have a contract in hand until four months after his meeting with McEwing in Fort Scott. Dated, May 4, 1927, the $36,000 scenery contract was handled by Moses’ business partner, Fred R. Megan. Signed on May 4, 1927.  At the time, Moses wrote, “I am to go there to do the work which will come in the late fall, after I finish the Salt Lake Consistory.  Moses also received partial payments for his work as the project progressed.  He wrote, “The first of February, the Directors granted me $5,000.00 to take care of local accounts, which put me on easy street once more.  Megan’s request that part payment only should be paid, was ignored by all concerned.”

Megan formerly worked as a salesman and technical designer for the Kansas City Scenic Co. and Service Studios of Chicago, in 1923 Megan partnered with Moses as the first iteration of Sosman & Landis was liquidated.  Moses & Megan purchased the name and “goodwill” of the firm the next year, although negotiations for this purchase had been ongoing since early in 1923. Several entities were interested in acquiring the main studio space, supplies, designs, and name of the firm. For decades, Sosman & Landis had advertised their main studio as the largest in North America, if not the world.

The Oakland designs and scenery project was just one of many in 1927. Other Sosman & Landis projects contracted and/or completed by Moses that year included stock scenery collections at theaters in Gary, IN, Loredo, TX, Dayton, OH, Edinburg, TX, Little Rock, AR, Salt Lake City, UT, Chicago, IL, Milwaukee, WI and Battle Creek, MI. Of his painting that summer in Salt Lake City, Moses wrote, “During the month of August I averaged more than 10 drops per week, besides making a number of designs and painting special sets…” Again, Moses was 71 years old at the time. Painting large backdrops took long hours and was physically tasking, but he had worked at this pace for years. On Thursday, Oct. 6, 1927, Moses dismantled his art gallery in Salt Lake City and packed up his supplies for Oakland. He was to start painting the Oakland Scottish Rite scenery that coming Monday. On Oct 6 in Oakland the paint bridge and frames were put up at the Oakland Scottish Rite where they would remain in place for the next five months, dismantled on March 6, 1928.

Moses would complete only more Scottish Rite collection that was comparable Oakland before his passing in 1934; it was in McAlester, Oklahoma. He would remember Oakland as his most artistic and McAlester as his biggest. The Oakland scenery measured 30’h x 50’w. The McAlester scenery measured 40’h x 56’w.

To be continued…