Broadway Microphones — Page 2

I was watching Wicked from the front row and I took notice that whomever plays Elphaba wears 3 mics. One on her forehead,one right by her ear and one on her hat(which only makes it's apperance during Dancing Through Life) I remember when Shoshona Bean knocked her hat off during Defying Gravity and the sound cut out completely.

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"i would say cant ACT.."

Really? When have you seen him act? Was it at the same time SpellingBeeFan4Ever heard him sing, as in never?

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Updated On: 7/9/08 at 08:02 PM

Christina Applegate also had her mic pack underneath her wig (hence the no wires taped to the back of her neck, etc.), which added a nice poof/bulk to the back of the wig.

I’ve always wondered that too. It’s quiet easy to see it when you’re close enough.

Also on the topic of mics… I’ve never fully understood how mics get turned on and off during the show. Are they ALWAYS on? Or only on for an actor’s lines? Is this the person’s job in the soundboard to control that? I ask this because of stuff like…
1) I’ve heard mic issues before. An actor would be saying a line and their mic would go on too early or too late (or not at all).

2) Say some actors are talking amongst themselves in the background on stage.. Are they really talking to each other with their mics turned off or are they just mouthing words? I thought they are really talking, but sometimes it looks like they’re just “pretending”. Sometimes I can hear them if I’m close enough or if the mic is still on. Same with ad-libbing. On the Legally Blonde MTV broadcast, for example, LBB and Annaleigh ad-libbed a bit and you can hear them above everyone else even though you’re not supposed to.

Sorry for all the questions, LOL, but I always wondered…

Common sense would also tell you...

If their mic was ALWAYS on, those poor souls would have to be awfully quiet whenever they weren't on stage, huh?

I have an idea!

lets be completely revolutionary and hire people who have actual singing ability! People whose voices can fill the stage space!

and then...
*cliche drum roll please*

we could do a show UNMIKED!

yes... I know. Seems scary. Whatever will we do without voice amplification!?

we might... be able to tell where on stage the voice is coming from. Or be spared from digitally altered high notes that have a piercing, ear-drum spliting like quality to them.

just a thought... :)

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Hey Cartwheel have you ever heard of a bootleg? They are quite common on Broadway, but of course you wouldn't know that as you only pop up when Gaiken is mentioned.

I don't know Joe's list of Bootlegs. It isn't hard to aquire one.

"are there people who actually go to the trouble to aquire those?"

Yes. They are called fans.

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since when was i brought in about the bootlegs???

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"Yes. They are called fans."

ah yes...

the same people who voted for him when he was on American Idol and propelled him to stardom. Now that's a sad commentary on our times.

you know it all goes back to miking. Call me Elaine Stritch but I do not agree with miking. No longer do we have real preformers on-stage. People with the capabilities to project their voices to fill the room.

They can and do put anyone on stage so long as they sell the tickets. THat's how we end up paying $150 to see Clay aiken in spamalot.

Obviously I'm feeling disillusioned, cynical and maybe a tad sardonic but The american musical is seeing a decline and I have a list of 1000 reasons why.

again... just saying... :)

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"the same people who voted for him when he was on American Idol and propelled him to stardom. Now that's a sad commentary on our times. "
Is there something wrong with voting for a singer on a singing competition? That's what it is there for.

And you obviously did not pay to see Clay in Spamalot, and have no idea how he did in the role, so WTF are you bitching about?

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