Forehead microphones

[Dummy]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 3:30pm

When did they start slapping actors’ microphones smack dab on their foreheads? Seems like they used to hide them better in the hair/brow line at the temple. They must do a better job acoustically up there on the noggin, but they sure look weird. The first time I noticed it, I thought, “That poor girl has a horrible birthmark or tumor on her head!” But then I realized everyone in the show was suffering from the same affliction.

Kind of a silly question, I know. But I find the mikes more of a distraction now than they used to be. Anyone else “bugged” by them?

[Joshua488]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 3:34pm

I posted about this a long time ago. The body mics only bother me when no attempt was made to hide them. I mean, why not just have the person walk around with a handheld mic if you're not going to hide it? Otherwise, I'm fine with them.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 3:43pm

every effort is made to hide the microphone IN the hair as much as possible.. however, sometimes, it has to be placed lower.. USUALLY this is due to the performer wearing a wig.. the mic head can not lie under the wig lace because it can distort the sound, so therefore it has to extend past the hairline... mic placement is a balance of concealment and placement for best frequency pick up.

[freelancer]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 3:46pm

It's just plain hard to get the perfect mic placement. My mom went all of "The Music Man" thinking Craig Bierko was playing Harold Hill with an earring until I explained that it was his mic. From my experiences in community theatre, I just haven't found the perfect example of mic placement. Would you rather not see the mic and not be able to hear clearly, or be able to hear clearly but see the mic? Part of the experience is the suspension of reality, but seeing a mic really makes that hard.

Updated On: 4/28/05 at 03:46 PM

[Dummy]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 3:55pm

I guess when you go to see Little Women and Jo looks like this, then they've got some work to do on hiding the mike.

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 4:00pm

Good Lord, what year is it set in!

Snicker snicker

[ashley0139]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 4:19pm

I think that producers/directors try to hide them as much as they can. It's not like they want you to see them either. They want them to be hidden as much as you do. They do what they can.

[jmnpublications]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 4:36pm

Ah, remember the good old days when actors didn't NEED body mics? When they knew how to project and articulate? When orchestras accompanied rather than gave concerts? When we had real strings and horns instead of synthesized noise? When singers didn't look like 7 of 9? (That is too funny, dummy). :)

lc

[Joshua488]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 4:41pm

Amen. I long for the return of those days.

[Dummy]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 4:50pm

Those were the days before everyone in the audience had gone deaf from rock concerts, headphones, etc. Nowadays even the voice on the subway is screaming at you. Go to a movie and you need to ask for a pair of earplugs with your popcorn and Milk Duds.

"Today's hearing loss is brought to you by Dolby."

The audience is listening? They're all bleeding out their ears! Lol.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 4:51pm

Call me a purist, but I loathe body mics. They allow actors to walk through a show, but everything's fine, because the audience can hear fine. Learn to project, or stick to movies!

[paradox_error]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 5:09pm

Agreed.

I don't believe in mics, and I've been trained not to use one...

They cause more problems than they prevent.

[trpguyy]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 5:45pm

They CAN cause more problems, but not to the performers. IF you have pros doing the sound, there won't be a problem with mics. And mics are put right in the middle of the forehead because that's where it picks up the best sound. And unless you're in the front few rows, you don't see the mic anyway. Those suckers are pretty small.

[cathyhyatt]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 5:54pm

melissaerrico-u clearly arent a performer because no matter how much you project you NEED a body mic. it wouldnt even be safe for the actors voice if they forced their sound to be louder...they do have 8 shows a week, ya know?

[ShuQ]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 6:37pm

CathyHyatt, I AM a performer and while I think they help and I like to hear the person singing...TOO MANY people see them as a necessity (like you) and don't learn to sing w/o them and wouldn't know what to do if theirs went out.

[Joshua488]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 6:40pm

cathyhyatt- You clearly aren't a trained musical theatre performer. Before microphones were used on Broadway, what do you think they did? Performers did shows eight times a week and they were fine because they were trained to do so. Nowadays, there is less emphasis placed on being able to project. If you can do it correctly, it is not unhealthy.

[Plum]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 6:45pm

Joshua has it right. Before microphones, performers belted out those scores without any aid, and they did it over the sound of orchestras that were larger than today's. And seriously, talk to an opera singer about singing with a mike and they'll laugh at you.

My latest case of mike horror came when I watched the PBS broadcast of Passion. Michael Cerveris' microphone looked like a little tumor by his ear. It was bizarre. I know it can be hard to hide a mike on a shaved head, but still.
Updated On: 4/28/05 at 06:45 PM

[Joshua488]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 6:50pm

Exactly! A teacher of mine (who also was a professor of opera) laughed aloud when I said that the actress playing Carlotta in THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA had a body mic. "The actress is trained in opera; she doesn't need a mic!" was her response.

So many Broadway performers nowadays would not be able to survive without a body mic, unfortunately. It's truly a shame.

[InfiniteGirl]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 6:51pm

Why don't they make the mics flesh-toned so they disappear?

[Joshua488]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 6:52pm

Most of the time, they are flesh tone. But sometimes they aren't.

[kangaroo]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 7:01pm

I think it looks funny... becuase the first time I saw them, I couldn't figure out why there were lines down some of the singer's foreheads. I don't like the look, I know that most people are too far away to see it, but in pictures it looks really strange. But if it gives the best sound, then keep it coming... I guess the flesh-skin toned ones will have to do

[jonartdesigns]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 9:49pm

they also make a mocha colored microphone for actors of color, which unfortunately most shows seem not to use for them. As bad as the flesh toned ones are its not as bad as the black line that goes down some performer's foreheads (seaweed in hairspray for example)

[Joshua488]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 9:52pm

Amen LOL. And in a rare case or two, the black mics are used on white performers, so it is very noticeable. I've also seen photos of Eden Espinosa when she went on as Elphaba and she had a black line running down her green forehead. Unattractive! LOL

[Parks]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 10:07pm

Eh, I think they're fine if they're small enough. My school did Funny Girl this last year and the guy that played Nick...his make up was SO pale and his mic was frickin' huge (on his forehead). It almost killed me to watch him go on stage. You could notice it from the rear mezz of the Gershwin. Not good. He originally looked like he had charm...but he looked...BAH when he was 'set' for the show.

Updated On: 4/28/05 at 10:07 PM

[redhotinnyc2]

Posted: 4/28/05 at 10:10pm

I've always worn mine over one ear.