Theaters can exist in an extraordinary variety of forms, ranging from (ancient — yet still used) amphitheaters to storefront conversions to specifically designed modern performing arts centers and repurposed movie palaces, and everything in between. So when it comes to deciding what sound system is best in any particular venue, the answers are as varied as the architecture, seating and decor. More than a few of these were never intended for either high-SPL music programs or even for the needs of traditional theatre, where vocal articulation and intelligibility is paramount.
Despite the beauty of an existing structure — such as a vintage art deco film theater — these facilities often present extraordinary challenges in terms of acoustics, to put it mildly. Meanwhile, another issue that frequently arises is finding an audio solution that can blend with a building’s historical nature, yet provide the required reinforcement. It’s never easy. And with that in mind, we decided to explore seven recent audio system upgrades in a wide variety of venues. Each of these found their own unique solutions, but all with the goal of providing clarity and musicality to every patron in every seat.
Suffolk Theater
Riverhead, NY
Capacity: About 400, depending on configuration
Key Components: Renkus-Heinz PNX121 mains, CFX218 subs, TRX62 fills; Avid VENUE SC 48 console; Crown amplification; WorxAudio wedges.
Designer: Stuart J. Allyn, A.D.R. Studios, Inc.
Installer: Charles Stursberg, Young Equipment Sales
The story of the Suffolk Theater in Riverhead, NY is altogether too familiar. After a grand opening in 1933, this extravagant and ornate movie palace — the last remaining large art deco theater on Long Island — finally closed in 1987, after a 54-year run. And like so many other neglected treasures, it lay fallow for nearly two decades until some citizens purchased the building in 2005. That saved The Suffolk from the wrecker’s ball, but the renovation was stalled for years and finally completed in 2013.
Today, the venue is a multi-use, state-of-the-art performing arts center and dinner theater with digital projection and flexible seating — the raked main floor was removed and flattened to accommodate various arrangements.
An all-Renkus-Heinz FOH audio system, designed by Stuart J. Allyn of Irvington, NY-based, A.D.R. Studios Inc., is a key part of the venue’s rebirth. “The goal was to provide smooth, even coverage throughout the entire audience area,” Allyn explains, “with proper time domains that would have the sound emanating from the stage, regardless of the seating configuration.”
Components include two custom painted Renkus-Heinz PNX121 passive 12-inch two-way boxes hung on either side of the stage with two CFX218 double-18 subs. Augmenting the mains are ten R-H low-profile TRX62 enclosures used as balcony fills and surrounds for cinema playback, all fed via a matrix feed from the FOH console.
“The TRX62 is my favorite over- and under-balcony system,” Allyn adds. “Their dispersion is exceptionally wide, particularly for a box with such a small footprint. The documentation on their coverage patterns is exceptionally true and reliable.”
The system is rounded out by a 62 x 24 Avid VENUE digital console handling FOH and monitors; 40 channels of Crown amplification; Symetrix Radius speaker distribution/management; and eight WorxAudio stage monitors. The mic complement includes Sennheiser wireless, Countryman headsets; an Earthworks PianoMic system; and dynamic and condensers from AKG, Sennheiser and Shure.
Designer Allyn was pleased with the results. “When I hear vocals coming out of these boxes, they sound like they should even before I touch an EQ. Intelligibility, warmth, depth, character — that’s what the human voice is all about, and it translates to the instruments in the orchestra.”
Hanover Theatre
Worcester, MA
Capacity: 2,300
Key Components: (12) EAW Anya modules — six/side in L/R hang; Yamaha LS9-32 digital console at FOH.
Designer: Gino Pellicano (EAW) with Nick Joyce (Hanover audio head)
Integrator: EAW Application Support Group
The Hanover Theatre has a long history over the past 110 years, from its beginnings as a vaudeville and silent movie house to doing “talkies,” Broadway touring shows and local programs as a centerpiece in the community. After a lengthy renovation/restoration process in 2008, the venue was renamed the Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts. The non-profit facility recently upgraded its sound capabilities with a 12-box Anya line array rig (six left/six right) from Eastern Acoustic Works.
The 3-way, full-range Anya array modules have 14 HF compression drivers, six 5-inch mid-frequency cone and dual 15-inch woofers. Within each Anya module is a field-replaceable power and processing unit with 22 channels of DSP and amplification to drive each of the 22 transducers.
The venue itself is a large, wide, rectangular room large, with a seated capacity of 2,300, with the main floor and its large balcony. The system design was created by EAW’s Application Support Group (ASG) team using EAW Resolution software. Adding input to the design process was The Hanover’s audio designer/head of audio Nick Joyce of IATSE Local 96. “The new design approach with Anya eliminates the anomalies created by the shape of the room and produces clean, clear sound throughout the entire listening area.”
“We built a model of the room and the system in the Resolution software,” explains Gino Pellicano, EAW ASG specialist. “It looks at everything and optimizes the system to work over the audience area defined in the model. The software handles DSP and system optimization — it takes hours off of the commissioning process.”
Prior to the new system, the venue’s parabolic rear wall would create slapback, redirecting audio energy to the seating area. By delivering specific vertical coverage to the seating area, Anya greatly reduced the deleterious room effects.
“I have never heard anything do what Anya does to my room,” Joyce adds. “It’s exciting to use the system and see the audience experience the warmth and clarity of the music from every seat in the house.”
Starlight Theatre
Kansas City, MO
Capacity: 7,958
Key Components: (48) L-Acoustics KARA line arrays in LCR hangs; (6) SB18 flown subs; (8) SB28 ground stacked subs; ARCS Wide and Focus proscenium fills; (6) 5XT and (3) 8XT front fills; (16) LA8 amplified controllers.
Designer: Idibri (Dallas)
Integrator: Clair Solutions (Nashville)
Founded in 1950, the Starlight Theatre is the second-largest outdoor producing theater in the country and won the 2013 Venue Excellence Award from the International Association of Venue Managers. It hosts a full program of concerts, plays, musicals and other events. Recently, the Starlight was looking for a sound system upgrade that would provide vocal intelligibility for dialog and the full-impact audio for musical shows.
Designed by Dallas-based Idibri (formerly Acoustic Dimensions) and installed by Clair Solutions of Nashville, the new system consists has 48 L-Acoustics KARA line array modules divided into left/right/center hangs of 16 above the proscenium stage. Flown arrays of six SB18 subwoofers, accompanied by eight ground-stacked SB28’s handle LF reinforcement. Proscenium fills are handled by two ARCS Wide and two ARCS Focus, while six tiny 5XT coaxial speakers and three larger 8XT enclosures comprise the front-fill complement. A total of 16 LA8 amplified controllers power the entire system.
“We put a lot of effort into choosing the new sound system,” states Starlight’s Justin White, noting the winnowing process began with five systems that Idibri project manager Ryan Knox suggested. Eventually, three finalists were selected for playback comparisons for Starlight staffers, board members, donors and city officials. an emphasis was placed on audio quality and intelligibility, but also an ability to endure extremes in weather common to Kansas City summers.
“The intelligibility we need for diction and dialog are all there,” says Starlight production manager Kent Andel. “At the same time, it works for music. The L-Acoustics system won hands down,” and the system was installed right before the busy summer season.
And in between shows, the new system is showing its versatility; it’s already been divided into three mini arrays — each with two SB18s, six KARA modules and all four ARCS enclosures — and used indoors at the Jeannette and Jerome Cohen Community Stage that’s part of the Starlight Theatre complex for off-season private events. “In addition to sounding great,” White says, “it’s also a very flexible system.”
Vernon and District Performing Arts Centre
Vernon, BC, Canada
Capacity: 750 (main auditorium)
Key Components: (18) Meyer Sound MINA, in two 9-box L/R hangs; center cluster with two CQ-1’s, two CQ-2’s and a 650-P sub; (4) UPM-1P front fills; (2) 1100-LFC subs; Galileo 616 processor; DiGiCo SD9 FOH console; (12) Turbosound TMW-112 wedges; Audio-Technica and Shure wireless systems; AKG, Clockaudio, Countryman, Sennheiser and Shure microphones.
Designer: James Dreyer of Dreyer Bros. Sound
Integrator: Dreyer Bros. Sound
Located in south-central British Columbia, the Vernon and District Performing Arts Centre is a complex with the intimate 100-seat, black-box-style Marie Fleming Hall and a large, modern proscenium arch theater with orchestra and balcony seating. Recently the audio for the main auditorium received a major audio upgrade by Dreyer Bros. Sound of nearby Kamloops, BC.
The existing center cluster of two Meyer Q-1’s, two CQ-2 speakers and a 650-P subwoofer is now joined by L/R outer hangs of nine Meyer MINA line arrays. Four Meyer UPM-1P’rs provide front fill, and two 1100-LFC low-frequency control elements were added for LF reinforcement. A Galileo 616 processor provides system drive and alignment.
“The MINA arrays work very well in the room, and have a profile that literally disappears into the proscenium wall,” notes system designer James Dreyer. “Their performance is just unbelievable. We walked the room top to bottom and side to side, and there wasn’t a dead seat anywhere.”
Artists and productions that have been heard through the new MINA system include Bryan Adams, Jesse Cook, Great Big Sea, and the Catalyst Theatre’s musical, Nevermore.
“We’ve yet to bring in an outside rental or have a tour take their rig off the truck,” adds the venue’s technical director Eric Pells. “Regular touring techs told me they love the MINA’s, both because they don’t have to hang their own arrays and because they now have a great system to mix on. It’s been a great experience all around,” he continues.
“The installation was easy, and we didn’t have to compromise any lighting positions with the slender profile of the MINA’s. So we now have the best of both worlds, for audio and for lighting.”
Sage Gateshead
Gateshead, U.K.
Capacity: 1,640 seats (in theater mode)
Key Components: (24) flown RCF HDL 20-A line arrays; (3) HDL 20-A’s/side and a SUB8004 used a portable stack on custom dollies; (3) SUB 8006 subs and an HDL 10-A on another portable stack; (6) HDL 10-A’s for under-balcony and front-fill; (4) TT08’s as outfills.
Designer: Jamie Moore and Chris McGee of Nitelites
Integrator: Nitelites
Located in the northeast English town of Gateshead, the Sage Gateshead is a multi-use facility that opened 10 years ago with a cost of approximately $120 million (USD). Home to Royal Northern Sinfonia, it’s also host to a vast concert agenda that includes jazz, folk, country and rock shows.
After years of renting RCF systems from local contractors Nitelites, the center decided to opt for a permanent system for its main hall that would be flexible enough to adapt to its varied needs. Eventually Nitelites’ MD Jamie Moore proposed that a flown HDL 20-A be installed on a permanent basis — both to save on rental costs and to enable the system to be purpose tuned via a series of preset scenes accessed via a custom panel.
“With HDL we were confident we could get even coverage around the building, whether for speech or classical,” notes Nitelites’ Andy McGee. “The system is easy to deploy, quick to rig and fast to wire.”
The P.A. is split into 12 zones to cover the ground floor, two-balcony tiers and. Nitelites detailed 12 HDL20-A enclosures for each flank, rigged on a flying frame. The rest of the complement comprises three HDL 20-A per side as portable ground stack on custom dollies, atop a SUB 8004 subwoofer. A separate stack has three SUB 8006s in a reverse cardioid pattern (one rear facing), with an HDL 10-A on top. Two HDL 10-A’s are also used for under-balcony infill and four as front lip fills. On the sides of the main hang are four RCF TT08s providing out fill coverage.
Via the DSP, Sage Gateshead can turn zones on and off in the P.A. at will. “It’s far more efficient than changing the angles of the boxes every time we needed a new configuration,” says Sage’s head of technical operations, Chris Durant. “The great thing about the HDL 20-A is that it goes down to 55 Hz, so for jazz and classical there is no need for subs at all; in fact the first time I heard it, I thought our subs had been switched in by mistake.”
Summing up the installation, Durant adds, “We are now making engineers aware that they can leave their kit on the truck.”
Shanghai Concert Hall
Shanghai, China
Capacity: 1,122
Key Components: (18) K-array KP102 mains; (2) KMT18P subs; KP102 and KMT18P for front fill.
Designer: Ziqian Chen
Integrator: Sennheiser China
Today, the fact that the Shanghai Concert Hall exists at all is somewhat of a miracle — both in terms of technology and determination. The building, in the city’s Huangpu district, was erected in 1930 and designed in a European-style neo-classical architecture. In 2007, a project to convert an adjoining road into an elevated causeway was announced, and the building would either have to be demolished or somehow moved. Fortunately, the government opted for the latter, and in an $8.2-million project in 2008, the massive 5,800-kiloton structure was raised up and moved 200 feet away, clear of the roadway.
K-array in China is represented by Sennheiser China, who partnered with the Shanghai Concert Hall to support the future of its musical culture and promote the arts in Shanghai and elsewhere in China. Part of this commitment was a thorough upgrade of the venue’s audio facilities.
The new system includes nine white K-array KP102 column array speakers on each side, embedded into the architecture of the room along with two KMT18P powered single-18-inch subwoofers. Front fill is comprised of a single KP102 column array (used horizontally) and another KMT18P powered sub. Also part of the upgrade, is a state of the art, centralized audio recording control system and System 9000 digital wireless mics.
“The K-array speakers are so thin and elegant, they are perfectly placed in the environment, hidden and not obtrusive to the eye,” says Sennheiser technical manager Ziqian Chen. “They are much better than the ‘black boxes’ that were there before. The sound is great and delivers consistent quality in a demanding environment such as this.”
Lucas Theatre for the Arts
Savannah, GA
Capacity: 1,200 (fixed seating)
Key Components: (12) Alcons LR7 line arrays per side; (2) LR7B flown subs; (2) BF181 ground sub; (3) Cinemarray CRA24 modules in center cluster; Avid VENUE SC48 (FOH console); Yamaha LS9-32 (monitor console); (9) EAW SM2001 wedges with Crown MacroTech amps.
Designer: Jon Maslansky of Summit Systems Inc.
Integrator: Summit Systems Inc.
The Lucas Theatre in Savannah, GA, represents another all-too familiar story where a local citizens worked to save a classic historic landmark and turned a neglected and long abandoned 93-year old theater into a jewel and showpiece of civic pride.
Reborn in 2000 as the Lucas Theatre for the Arts, the facility is now supported by the Savannah College of Art and Design, presenting films, plays, musicals, corporate events and concerts of every genre. The Lucas is also involved with the annual Savannah Film Festival.
Last year, integrator Jon Maslansky of Summit Systems (Buford, GA) began working with theater manager David Harris to improve the venue’s aging audio system. One key requirement was a system that would deliver quality sound while not impeding the structure’s architectural and historic character.
“Having worked closely with David on other issues, we gained his trust and were able to work closely with the theater management, assuring them that we could deliver a suitable solution,” says Maslansky.
The answer came in the form of 12 Alcons Audio LR7 micro-sized pro-ribbon line arrays and two LR7B flown 12-inch bass units, along with two BF181 single-18 subs beneath the stage. The install also marks the first US-deployment of Alcons’ Sentinel DSP amplification platform. To support movie presentations, a center cluster was added with three Cinemarray CRA24 modules. Combined with the left/right hangs, the center array makes for perfect L/C/R blending.
