Center stage

As if one politician at a time isn't enough, the stage for the Democratic National Convention has two podiums, so that two speakers can address the audience at once.

''It gives us the ability to have more than one speaker at a time and also have different angles and different backdrops for different speakers," said Alan Rose, convention hall manager for the Democratic National Convention Committee. ''That's one of the ways that we're trying to change the convention and . . . link the people who are speaking with delegates."

The FleetCenter was opened to members of the media yesterday, after a three-week blackout, to show off the stage and the transformation of the sports arena into the setting for next week's convention. Organizers reported that the construction work is on schedule, despite a four-day delay due to a police picket last month.

''It took us about a week and a half to get back on schedule, but we're exactly where we need to be in terms of opening the convention up on Monday," Rose said.

The center of the stage is filled by a huge screen, 90 feet wide and 17 feet high, that will display images from around the country, via tape and satellite. Beginning Monday, the large screen will be lit by five projectors. Convention staff members will work on stage, but will remain hidden behind 17 plasma screens on either side of the set.

The set is topped with a 55-foot American flag. The set is covered in blue carpet and dark wood and is illuminated by 600 feet of lights. The set extends even farther on either side, by a press gallery large enough to accommodate 476 print reporters.

Elsewhere in the arena, the luxury boxes have been taken over by media groups including CNN, PBS, and Al-Jazeera. Construction workers cut through the concrete ceilings of the passageways to the Boston Bruins locker rooms, so that the 6-foot-4-inch nominee can pass through. An expanse of new red carpet will soon cover the floor.

Construction may be on track, but aesthetic indecision has kept workers from Mystic Scenic Studios Inc. hard at work. The stage originally featured a wood finish, but was then painted silver to appear metallic. Yesterday, Cheryl Jeffries had the job of painting the stage again to look like wood. The paint flip-flop has kept Jeffries and fellow set workers busy.

''I thought this would never end; they just kept building," said Jeffries. ''I thought to myself, 'Bigger brushes for everyone!' It's quite a feat. I hope Mr. Kerry likes it."