The University of Hawai'i-Manoa's Kennedy Theatre reopened yesterday after a mold infestation forced the closure of the auditorium for nearly two months.

"We're back in business," said Gregg Lizenbery, chairman of theater and dance at UH-Manoa. "We're so thrilled and amazed that they finished on time," he said yesterday during a tour of the facility.

Work to clean up the mold infestation was largely complete on Sept. 19, and the opening followed air sampling and a final walk-through, said Emma Kennedy, a consultant with UH-Manoa's Environmental Services Office.

Unitek Insulation LLC handled the extensive mold cleanup at a cost of $170,060.

A thick layer of green, slimy mold that once covered the wood railings and doors is no longer there.

Mold that crawled up wood panels on the auditorium walls and covered carpeting with large round splotches also has been cleaned up.

Kennedy said the theater is safe to be used again. In fact, it is "the cleanest it has ever been," she said.

The closure cost the theater about $25,000 and included the cancellation of "The Boy Who Tricked the Moon." The children's play, if left on schedule, would have opened this week to 400 to 500 local schoolchildren, said Marty Myers, theater manager.

Robert Wylie, a senior majoring in theater at UH-Manoa, was to have his set design unveiled during the canceled season opener. He said he is excited to have the center of performing arts on campus open again.

"It's great. The whole point of theater is sharing and performing," said Wylie.

Systematic monitoring, spot checking and cleaning of the theater will be done to prevent future mold infestations.

Theater management will also be looking for ways to decrease humidity in the auditorium, said Myers.

The mold was discovered by Myers in July. Apparently the mold began to grow after June 24, when the air-conditioning was turned off for a week while a fire-retardant curtain containing asbestos was being removed, Myers said.

Reach Loren Moreno at lmoreno@honoluluadvertiser.com.