Photo by Scott Suchman.

Norma Desmond isn't the only fading star in Signature Theatre's Sunset Boulevard, says properties master Glen Sears. Desmond, played by Broadway star Florence Lacey, unwillingly shares the spotlight with her ancient limousine, a 1931 Isotta Fraschini. A critical prop in the movie and the musical – like any great Los Angeles story, cars figure prominently in the plot – Desmond and the antique limousine are forced into an unlikely rivalry.

"The car has to compete with the leading lady of the show," says Sears. "It's the competition between the washed-up old actor and the washed-up old car the studio wants instead of her."

Sears built the latter. It was impractical to get a real Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8B Viggo Jensen Cabriolet d'Orsay, the iconic make from the film. Not only is the car too big and heavy for the stage, but the luxury cars are so rare that they sell at auction for far more than a regional theater's yearly budget. He had to build one from scratch. And since there are so few Isotta Fraschinis left, Sears couldn't even see one in person – he had to base it on stills.

Signature Theatre rented the car for their current production from Sears, who is the prop master at Philadelphia's Walnut Street Theatre. It hasn't been used in any Walnut Street productions, though, because Sears, who has a reputation for building cars that can be used on stage, was commissioned for the Ogunquit Playhouse's production shortly after the rights for the musical became available at the regional theater level. The Broadway production also had a custom-built car, Sears says, but it's now in London, and not available for rental.

Sears says that Ogonquit didn't have it in their budget to own the car, so Sears built it on his own, and is recouping his costs by renting it to theaters like Signature that need it for their shows. He values the car around $30,000. Compare that to the cost of Isotta Fraschini used in the film, which sold to a collector for $1,382,500.

"We built it as close as we could [to the original]," says Sears. "Being that the Isotta Fraschini car is untouchable, even getting parts was difficult."

A still from the film Sunset Boulevard showing Norma Desmond's original car in her garage.

Sears cobbled the car together with other antique auto parts he found on eBay. The chassis and drivetrain are from a 1936 Chevy pick-up, and the body is a 1929 Model A with the roof removed to make a convertible. The front of the car is custom built, and stretched out to give it a limousine look. The wheels are from a 1920's Chevy and the fenders are from a Model A. Sears says he found an original Isotta Fraschini hood ornament, but it cost $2,000, so he went without. He built the car in four weeks.

Cost and parts weren't the only challenges to overcome. There are special considerations a properties master needs to take when building a car of the stage.

"It has to be easy for [actors] to manage. It has to be lightweight," says Sears. "It has to be smaller. It looks like a big car, but it's three feet shorter. Anything that wasn't necessary on the car has been removed."

The car, which weighs 3,000 lbs, is drivable, and is driven on stage in the production. It has a battery-operated engine, and is operated the same way a normal car is.

"We've done everything we can to make it as safe for the actors," says Sears. "If they have a driver's license, they can drive it on stage."

Sears says the car's speed tops out around 35 miles per hour – about the same as the real vehicle. Cars were slower back then, he says. Though the film Sunset Boulevard featured high-speed, long-distance car chases, the car in the theatrical production doesn't go further than 10 feet.

Only when Sears is transporting the vehicle does he get to put the pedal to the metal, albeit gently. The car came from Philadelphia in a truck, but it was driven right off of the ramp.

"At Signature, we drove it through the scene shop, right onto the stage," he says. Shorter than a joyride down Sunset Boulevard, but it'll do.