This was a very exciting project for me, lasting for more then a year. When I first arrived at Playmakers Rep, I realized quickly that the sound system was not adequate to accomplish the seasons productions. At that point I started early research to update the sound department capital requests. Given the wide variety of productions we produce the main focus of the system had to be flexibility. We also needed a system with a high gain before feedback for musicals, simple enough for student engineers and designers, and a system that would remain current for an extended time. Ultimately, I submitted a proposal for a new loudspeaker system, a new mixing console and redundant computer playback.
Shortly after turning in my proposal I had a chance to meet with the Board of Advisors, and I was able to convince them of the value of the upgrade plan and that we also needed a new vocal reinforcement system, and the Board committed to raising the money for it. A week later I was informed that the funds from the University came through, along with the Boards' equaling $99,000.
After a month long bidding process, the equipment began to arrive and the installation began. This was done in stages, since productions were going on during the install. As a temporary solution, I installed the digital stage box we purchased into the racks as a patch bay and worked with one of my students to re-solder, re-loom and finally install everything permanently.
Normally when installing or designing a system on a per show basis the focus is very narrow. Where as designing a major system upgrade like this involves focusing on the long term needs of the theater. It was a challenging and educational experience designing a system for the long term, but it lead to a very flexible system, capable of many different configurations and uses, from straight plays to musicals.
