Orbital Sound Ltd

Sunday In The Park With George - A Rave Review for Zaxcom & HME ComLink

Paul Mac talks to the sound

Technical Tour
My technical tour of the show, courtesy of David Beckham and Masha Baird started with the console. While the Yamaha MC7L is a very capable board, a show such as Sunday does test its limits. "The desk only has eight matrix outputs," explains Beckham. This is of course where the LCS system comes into its own, although I did question the use of a smaller-format console in the first place. "I'm not sure whether it's to do with the size of the space we had allocated for the sound desk, "says Beckham. "There wasn't a lot of space allocated for that. I don't think we'd have got a PM5D in there... And it will be a lot to do with cost."

That said, it's a very active show for the mixer, and the MC7L does have simplicity on its side. "It's meant to be a more straightforward desk," comments Baird. "And most things are... it's all on one layer -very analogue in that sense." It was this line of discussion that brought to light a lesser-known problem with multi-layer boards - flying scripts with every layer change. So if any manufacturers are listening, including a script screen in the software with text file import via the USB key or something else equally convenient would be a very good idea.

As mentioned before, the LCS CueStation/ Matrix3 system takes over where the console leaves off. According to Frost the LCS is fed a variety of outputs from the console including channel direct outputs, matrix outputs (you can route channels directly to the matrix on the MC7L), and bus outputs, then CueStation does the rest. "It's the first time I've used it in theatre in such a responsible role, "says Frost. "So far, it's the best sounding digital product that I've ever heard. It has been around for a long time but it does have phenomenal audio properties." In-show reliability of the system has so far been 100 percent, even though the control software has occasionally required a pre-show reboot when the start-up has failed.

A Special Space
One of the undoubted heroes of the show is the LCS VRAS system. Essentially it creates virtual acoustic spaces using multi-speaker and multi-microphone set-ups. Even before the audience arrives, the VRAS system on Sunday is working hard to make the Wyndham's auditorium sound bigger and more lively than it actually is. Thus at walk-in, the audience accepts that acoustic as the norm. When the show starts, the VRAS effect is taken out to accentuate the small room where the story begins (using the real, quite absorbent, acoustic of the Wyndham's Theatre).

Shortly afterwards the effect is reinstated, and continues for most of the show. The only other changes are a move to an early-reflection mode, fed by the cast microphones, to reinforce a large, reflective gallery scene; and the final scene, which reverts to the Wyndham's natural acoustic for the small room again.

This is possibly the most overt contributor to artificially creating a natural sound in the auditorium. It's a creative need, fulfilled with an almost subliminal approach to the way the audience experiences the show.

The main rig is d&b with around 45 surround delays in the auditorium, another 20 or so around the proscenium arch and a couple more on stage. One interesting aspect of the reinforcement is the 15-inch Tannoy dual-concentric drivers on either side of the stage. These are mounted without their boxes and are used exclusively for vocal reproduction. The lack of a baffle might make a box designer squirm, but this is about vocal clarity and so it doesn't matter so much that you're throwing away the bottom end.

Microphone Management
At the front end the show is well loaded with radio mic channels. In this case though the system in question is a relatively recent introduction - the Zaxcom Digital Wireless system. Without exception, the people involved in the show are certain that this choice has been a success "I've never used a radio mic that sounds so acoustic," comments Beckham. And Masha Baird, who is usually responsible for the mics in the show from backstage concurs: "I've mixed the show at the weekends and there are points when you wonder 'Have I lost that mic? Is it still there?' Its only when you take it out that it becomes obvious."

"It's like plugging a microphone straight into a desk with a cable," says Frost. "For a lot of people it's difficult to understand how different that is, but until you actually listen to the same type of capsule plugged into different systems... It's chalk and cheese. We're just not used to using small omni capsules and getting the full response from them."

Interestingly this boost for the capsule brings new challenges to the fore - not only is the cast's clarity enhanced, so are the reflections from nearby objects. Though in this context I guess it's a nice challenge to have.

While radio mics in theatre are more often than not camouflaged in inventive ways, the message I got from talking to all concerned was that hiding the mics in this case was a prime directive -the idea of 'invisible reinforcement' means that if a shadow or shape of a mic were to distract the audience, the game would be up and the illusion ruined. This responsibility is down to Baird: "My brief was to make sure that nobody could see any radio mics.. and nobody can see any radio mics, so I guess I did my job!" Beckham shatters the modesty: "We leave Masha on her own backstage so I think she's underestimating what she did does.

"Getting everybody's radio mic together and making sure that the cast are happy isn't easy... That's the hardest part of the show really - getting everything backstage ready... there's a lot of work in that. Sweat is the hardest thing to deal with. Everybody sweats and when they're nervous they sweat more. Keeping everybody working is a hard job."

Daniel Evans heads up the cast in the role of two George Seurats - the original and the great-grandson, and so is onstage for almost the entire run of the show. In the third preview the sound crew lost Daniel's mic part-way through and could do very little about it. So now Daniel wears two microphones and two body packs. "The wig that he wears is parted to the left, and whenever it's hot we always lose the left mic first." In pubic shows so far the second mic has only given out in the second act, and of course the first mic has been replaced by then. In the preview however, it was left to Beckham to make the moves: "David just took the band down and everybody else down," explains Baird. "And because Daniel is a pro, he can fill the room."

"You need the musical director to be on the ball in that instance as well," continues Beckham. "If they're playing away at a certain level it's going to drown them out. You all have to realise what is happening and bring everything down."

One reason Beckham can move to correct this kind of upset so quickly is his knowledge of the show and the fact that he has a very 'active' mixing role during every performance. Frost sees handing the Sound No.1 this kind of responsibility as crucial: "They need to feel a part of it and understand what they're doing," he explains. "It allows more curvyness and roundness to the whole thing because they can work with the band and the cast. It's not about just getting a few vocal moves in the right place; it's about the continual mixing of all of those things... We want everyone to be coming to a live show where people are giving live performances." And that includes the performer behind the console.

Gone For A Song
Sunday In The Park With George is another example of the effort and invention that is continually pumped into sound for contemporary theatre productions. As a purely technical solution the sound design is merely a facilitator. Add a creative imperative and you end up with a performance that stands apart only because the people behind it never appear on stage.

Communications
While the stage crew's comms system isn't normally a reason to jump up and down, as with everything else in this show the comms for Sunday bring something a little extra to the party. Frost chose a new system, from US company HME - a digital wireless intercom. In this case the electronics are packed into the headset, (WH200) so not only do you get a better quality of comms, you don't have to deal with cable tangles and weighty belt packs.

"It's nice to give the Show Manager some comms from day one and they just go off with happy faces for the rest of the show. It's refreshing," says Frost. And Sunday's Show Manager, Howard Jepson, confirms this with an endorsement that would entitle any manufacturer to rub its hands: "They're fantastic -just brilliant. The really good thing about them is firstly they're crystal clear, they're lightweight, there's no wires, and they're easy to use. It's the best cans system I've ever used. Normally you've got a great big on your belt."

"Sunday ln The Park With George is a Sondheim musical « inspired by George Seurat's painting Sunday Afternoon on the Island of the Grand Jatte. This latest production, brought from London's Menier Chocolate Factory to the Wyndham's Theatre close to the heart of London's theatre-land is an impressive mix of projected animation, and sound design that (intentionally) disappears in a cloud of technology, supports the cast, and brings the audience into a fabricated yet convincing world for the duration of the show.

Sound Designer Sebastian Frost (for Orbital Sound), Sound No.1 David Beckham, and Sound No.2 Masha Baird all have a hand in the sonics for Sunday, which in this case is defined by its 'creative anonymity'. Several important technical contributions punctuate the path from stage to auditorium in this production, and it's bringing these, plus the skills of the crew, to bear on a single project (and on such a committed reach for naturalism) that makes Sunday an important entry in the how-to book of theatre sound.

Overview
The production uses 16 radio mics for cast, all of which are the new Zaxcom Digital Wireless UHF models (TRX 900 and RX4900). These plus the band feeds meet at the FOH console, a brand-new Yamaha MC7L. After this, there are two additional systems, both from LCS Audio. First, the combination of Matrix3 hardware and CueStation software take on a very practical task, effectively expanding the output options for FOH and providing all of the system architectural control such as system EQ, delays and so on. This incorporates the outputs from the VRAS (Variable Room Acoustic System) system operating throughout much of the production (indeed, there is no additional artificial reverb on any [singing] in the musical).

The standard PA is provided by d&b, though Frost has made particular use of 'out-of-the-box' Tannoy dual concentric drivers for the bulk of the direct dialogue - a solution apparently first employed by well-known Sound Designer Martin Levan after hearing a driver undergoing bench tests during a visit to the Tannoy factory. Backstage comms feature another relative new-comer in the form of HME.

All of this was specified by Frost on the basis of a fairly simple aim - to provide sound reinforcement that both augments the production practically and creatively, yet remains as inconspicuous as possible. "A lot of people don't want to hear a show amplified," he explains. "But they go to a show expecting a lot of excitement. "This is the tricky bit... or as Frost puts it: "To achieve an apparent lack of reinforcement is the challenge."

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Technical Tour
My technical tour of the show, courtesy of David Beckham and Masha Baird started with the console. While the Yamaha MC7L is a very capable board, a show such as Sunday does test its limits. "The desk only has eight matrix outputs," explains Beckham. This is of course where the LCS system comes into its own, although I did question the use of a smaller-format console in the first place. "I'm not sure whether it's to do with the size of the space we had allocated for the sound desk, "says Beckham. "There wasn't a lot of space allocated for that. I don't think we'd have got a PM5D in there... And it will be a lot to do with cost."

That said, it's a very active show for the mixer, and the MC7L does have simplicity on its side. "It's meant to be a more straightforward desk," comments Baird. "And most things are... it's all on one layer -very analogue in that sense." It was this line of discussion that brought to light a lesser-known problem with multi-layer boards - flying scripts with every layer change. So if any manufacturers are listening, including a script screen in the software with text file import via the USB key or something else equally convenient would be a very good idea.

As mentioned before, the LCS CueStation/ Matrix3 system takes over where the console leaves off. According to Frost the LCS is fed a variety of outputs from the console including channel direct outputs, matrix outputs (you can route channels directly to the matrix on the MC7L), and bus outputs, then CueStation does the rest. "It's the first time I've used it in theatre in such a responsible role, "says Frost. "So far, it's the best sounding digital product that I've ever heard. It has been around for a long time but it does have phenomenal audio properties." In-show reliability of the system has so far been 100 percent, even though the control software has occasionally required a pre-show reboot when the start-up has failed.

A Special Space
One of the undoubted heroes of the show is the LCS VRAS system. Essentially it creates virtual acoustic spaces using multi-speaker and multi-microphone set-ups. Even before the audience arrives, the VRAS system on Sunday is working hard to make the Wyndham's auditorium sound bigger and more lively than it actually is. Thus at walk-in, the audience accepts that acoustic as the norm. When the show starts, the VRAS effect is taken out to accentuate the small room where the story begins (using the real, quite absorbent, acoustic of the Wyndham's Theatre).

Shortly afterwards the effect is reinstated, and continues for most of the show. The only other changes are a move to an early-reflection mode, fed by the cast microphones, to reinforce a large, reflective gallery scene; and the final scene, which reverts to the Wyndham's natural acoustic for the small room again.

This is possibly the most overt contributor to artificially creating a natural sound in the auditorium. It's a creative need, fulfilled with an almost subliminal approach to the way the audience experiences the show.

The main rig is d&b with around 45 surround delays in the auditorium, another 20 or so around the proscenium arch and a couple more on stage. One interesting aspect of the reinforcement is the 15-inch Tannoy dual-concentric drivers on either side of the stage. These are mounted without their boxes and are used exclusively for vocal reproduction. The lack of a baffle might make a box designer squirm, but this is about vocal clarity and so it doesn't matter so much that you're throwing away the bottom end.

Microphone Management
At the front end the show is well loaded with radio mic channels. In this case though the system in question is a relatively recent introduction - the Zaxcom Digital Wireless system. Without exception, the people involved in the show are certain that this choice has been a success "I've never used a radio mic that sounds so acoustic," comments Beckham. And Masha Baird, who is usually responsible for the mics in the show from backstage concurs: "I've mixed the show at the weekends and there are points when you wonder 'Have I lost that mic? Is it still there?' Its only when you take it out that it becomes obvious."

"It's like plugging a microphone straight into a desk with a cable," says Frost. "For a lot of people it's difficult to understand how different that is, but until you actually listen to the same type of capsule plugged into different systems... It's chalk and cheese. We're just not used to using small omni capsules and getting the full response from them."

Interestingly this boost for the capsule brings new challenges to the fore - not only is the cast's clarity enhanced, so are the reflections from nearby objects. Though in this context I guess it's a nice challenge to have.

While radio mics in theatre are more often than not camouflaged in inventive ways, the message I got from talking to all concerned was that hiding the mics in this case was a prime directive -the idea of 'invisible reinforcement' means that if a shadow or shape of a mic were to distract the audience, the game would be up and the illusion ruined. This responsibility is down to Baird: "My brief was to make sure that nobody could see any radio mics.. and nobody can see any radio mics, so I guess I did my job!" Beckham shatters the modesty: "We leave Masha on her own backstage so I think she's underestimating what she did does.

"Getting everybody's radio mic together and making sure that the cast are happy isn't easy... That's the hardest part of the show really - getting everything backstage ready... there's a lot of work in that. Sweat is the hardest thing to deal with. Everybody sweats and when they're nervous they sweat more. Keeping everybody working is a hard job."

Daniel Evans heads up the cast in the role of two George Seurats - the original and the great-grandson, and so is onstage for almost the entire run of the show. In the third preview the sound crew lost Daniel's mic part-way through and could do very little about it. So now Daniel wears two microphones and two body packs. "The wig that he wears is parted to the left, and whenever it's hot we always lose the left mic first." In pubic shows so far the second mic has only given out in the second act, and of course the first mic has been replaced by then. In the preview however, it was left to Beckham to make the moves: "David just took the band down and everybody else down," explains Baird. "And because Daniel is a pro, he can fill the room."

"You need the musical director to be on the ball in that instance as well," continues Beckham. "If they're playing away at a certain level it's going to drown them out. You all have to realise what is happening and bring everything down."

One reason Beckham can move to correct this kind of upset so quickly is his knowledge of the show and the fact that he has a very 'active' mixing role during every performance. Frost sees handing the Sound No.1 this kind of responsibility as crucial: "They need to feel a part of it and understand what they're doing," he explains. "It allows more curvyness and roundness to the whole thing because they can work with the band and the cast. It's not about just getting a few vocal moves in the right place; it's about the continual mixing of all of those things... We want everyone to be coming to a live show where people are giving live performances." And that includes the performer behind the console.

Gone For A Song
Sunday In The Park With George is another example of the effort and invention that is continually pumped into sound for contemporary theatre productions. As a purely technical solution the sound design is merely a facilitator. Add a creative imperative and you end up with a performance that stands apart only because the people behind it never appear on stage.

Communications
While the stage crew's comms system isn't normally a reason to jump up and down, as with everything else in this show the comms for Sunday bring something a little extra to the party. Frost chose a new system, from US company HME - a digital wireless intercom. In this case the electronics are packed into the headset, (WH200) so not only do you get a better quality of comms, you don't have to deal with cable tangles and weighty belt packs.

"It's nice to give the Show Manager some comms from day one and they just go off with happy faces for the rest of the show. It's refreshing," says Frost. And Sunday's Show Manager, Howard Jepson, confirms this with an endorsement that would entitle any manufacturer to rub its hands: "They're fantastic -just brilliant. The really good thing about them is firstly they're crystal clear, they're lightweight, there's no wires, and they're easy to use. It's the best cans system I've ever used. Normally you've got a great big on your belt."