The Pabst Theater Group cleans the chandelier once a year.
It weighs 1.23 tons and it takes all manpower to lower and raise it. Joseph Huser, director of facilities at the Pabst Theater can tell you first hand.
"It took us about twenty minutes to lower it fifty feet with a hand crank," said Huser.
Thirty-three thousand crystals sparkle as the chandelier comes to rest just low enough for volunteers to clean and polish each strand.
"A majority of volunteers that have been doing it with us for a long time are a lot of our volunteer ushers actually," said public relations director Andy Nelson.
Huser said cleaning is done once a year whether the chandelier looks dirty or not.
"It doesn't look too dirty when it's up, but when it's down you can see it has quite a bit of dust," Huser said.
The chandelier is a source of pride for the Pabst Theater Group. They love when touring acts see it for the first time.
"Some of those moments fans don't get to see and I get to see because our offices are in here," Nelson said. "It's like 3 p.m. when it's sound check, and they're walking on stage for the first time and it's like, 'Oh my god!' and a big part of it is that chandelier and the entire theater itself."
Nelson said they are awe-inspiring moments that are not going away any time soon.
"This grand old lady as it is affectionately called is in its busiest hey day ever, that it has ever had since 1895," Nelson said.
Volunteers will take two days to clean the chandelier and then it will be returned to the ceiling.
