Is Hadestown notably loud?

[mikem]

Posted: 4/16/19 at 11:33pm

I am having a recent issue with my ear being sensitive to loud noise. Is Hadestown noticeably louder than most musicals? I have been able to see musicals recently with occasionally plugging my ear during louder portions, but if the whole show is loud, that won't really work. I have not had a problem with plays.

If you thought that Hadestown was very loud or not very loud, if you could also mention where you sat, that would be really appreciated. Thank you in advance! I really want to see the show, but I don't want to have to leave in the middle!

[CatastrophicDay]

Posted: 4/16/19 at 11:38pm

I wouldn't say it is loud, no.

I sat last row orchestra, dead center. I'm also sensitive to loud noises (I'm sooooo tired of gun fire in shows) and nothing was jarring in the show. Of course the singers are mic'd and such, but at no point did I note that it was at all uncomfortable, and I'm the first one to complain. (The Ferryman's music that transitions from the prologue blared right in my ear and apparently I was the first person to ever mention it to the usher. Go figure!) 

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 4/17/19 at 2:34am

Just wondering: don't ear plugs work for you? You could buy a pair and take them, just in case.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 4/17/19 at 7:43am

I didnt think so. Last week at BMC, i found everything to be to loud....many of my group did....but i didnt feel that way all for this.

[bjh2114]

Posted: 4/17/19 at 8:01am

Not at all. 

[Jmuep2]

Posted: 4/17/19 at 12:59pm

Agreed. I'm not sensitive to loud sounds and I've been to rock concerts that were quieter than BMC. 

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 4/17/19 at 1:25pm

The show is not notably loud. I think it’s actually a very good sound design. The entire band is onstage and they sound like they’re onstage and not being blasted from speakers. Same with the actors. It’s an intimate theatre, so anything overly loud will be noticeable. Nothing is too loud in the show.

[JustAnotherNewYorker]

Posted: 4/17/19 at 1:32pm

Depending on where you sit, it can be.

 

I'd suggest bringing earplugs if you are worried or sensitive to sound. You can use them, or not, depending on your subjective comfort.

[ebenn77]

Posted: 4/17/19 at 3:33pm

I didn't find it particularly loud, and I have a torn eardrum that rattles during loud shows and concerts. This didn't affect it at all. I was sitting left mezzanine, middle of the section, so definitely away from any speakers. You might want to bring earplugs though, as suggested by others.

[mikem]

Posted: 4/17/19 at 9:54pm

Thank you everyone for your advice!  I really appreciate it!  I got a ticket a bit to the side, hopefully away from any big speakers.  I'm really looking forward to the show!

[jdrye222]

Posted: 4/21/19 at 6:52pm

I have to say that, as someone who is extremely picky about sound design (and generally I find broadway sound design to be atrocious), HADESTOWN has the best sound I’ve experienced since Piazza. The orchestration is trusted, which never happens.
I had my own mixed feelings about other aspects of the show (mainly that it’s way too f^*king long for its story- it’s like they didn’t trust that the material was good enough to have less of it). But the sound is fantastic.
Having said that - at the performance I saw, the song they sing after the curtain call seemed to be done completely acoustically with NO mics or amplification, and I could not help but yearn for a show like that, in a house like the Kerr where it would actually work, to have the guts to do the entire show that way. How amazing would it be, in this day and age, to be the “unplugged” show? If ever I’ve seen one where they could, it’s this.

[uncageg]

Posted: 4/21/19 at 7:19pm

I too pay close attention to sound design.

Saw the show on April 4th. Sat Orchestra, Row J house right seat number 4. The design is good. On that evening the volume was a bit too loud. My head was numb when I left the show. I know it takes time to get the sound balance right and the designer will sit all over the theater to listen to a show. Maybe they have found their balance.

[jdrye222]

Posted: 4/21/19 at 7:31pm

I saw it that week as well. Maybe it was where I sat. I was third row house right.
I think a lot of people don’t realize that sound is really the last thing to settle, as there is no accurate way to complete the design until there are bodies in the house.
I will say, I had NO clue what ANY lyric was coming out of Patrick Page’s mouth, and nearly no idea what the melody was of anything he sang. I get it - he can sing low. But I found his entire performance to be about that and nothing else. I kept wishing amber gray had a real performance opposite her. I know I’m in the minority but I thought he was really awful.

[uncageg]

Posted: 4/21/19 at 10:45pm

jdrye222 said: "I saw it that week as well. Maybe it was where I sat. I was third row house right.
I think a lot of people don’t realize that sound is really the last thing to settle, as there is no accurate way to complete the design until there are bodies in the house.
I will say, I had NO clue what ANY lyric was coming out of Patrick Page’s mouth, and nearly no idea what the melody was of anything he sang. I get it - he can sing low. But I found his entire performance to be about that and nothing else. I kept wishing amber gray had a real performance opposite her. I know I’m in the minority but I thought he was really awful."

You are not alone. The volume they had on his voice shook the house. Some of the really low notes were way off key and he was just too amplified.

 

[Robbie2]

Posted: 4/21/19 at 10:56pm

jdrye222 said: "I saw it that week as well. Maybe it was where I sat. I was third row house right.
I think a lot of people don’t realize that sound is really the last thing to settle, as there is no accurate way to complete the design until there are bodies in the house.
I will say, I had NO clue what ANY lyric was coming out of Patrick Page’s mouth, and nearly no idea what the melody was of anything he sang. I get it - he can sing low. But I found his entire performance to be about that and nothing else. I kept wishing amber gray had a real performance opposite her. I know I’m in the minority but I thought he was really awful."

that was 2 weeks ago...sound volume - design I guess has settled...actually it was perfect from front mezzanine

[Jish]

Posted: 4/22/19 at 9:07am

Since going to Hedwig and worrying about the effect of super loud musicals on my hearing, I have taken to wearing musician's earplugs to all musicals.

With musician's earplugs you can swap out the filters - I just wear 9db filters - so it just cuts the edge a bit. I believe it also has a side advantage of essentially muting all the annoying noises around me (rustling of playbills etc)

A bit over the top - but a good solution for people who are sensitive. To do this you need to get molds made by an audiologist but it is easy!