It's 2012 why are actor's mics still so visible?

Haha . . . This is a good point

I brought a friend to Sister Act who doesn't attend much theatre and they asked me immediately what was the "thing" at their hairline. Most shows I don't notice (wigs or not). I assume its because of the nun habits later on, for Deloris anyway, why its not hidden under her wig before.

That STILL baffles me to no end. I've been seeing shows on Broadway since 1972 (first show was PIPPIN; I was 7 years old) and mics were hidden completely back then.

If memory serves me right, the first forehead 'wart' mic I remember seeing was when SUNSET BLVD. first arrived in 1995. After that, EVERY actor in EVERY show had that 'wart' mic on their foreheads. After RENT, many shows started using that stick headphone type of mic.

Seems technology is going in reverse on Broadway. You'd expect them to have gone from perfectly hidden mics to virtually invisible -- not more visible than a third arm on their bodies.

It's the "Andrew Lloyd Webber Syndrome" as Forbidden Broadway called it. Many principles have 2 mics at the hairline - 1 for regular, 1 for affects/backup.

For all of those people interested in microphone technology:

The size and placement of mics hasn't changed appreciably for the simple reason that physics is involved. The same principals that dictate the size of speakers (which aren't invisible either) dictate microphones. A mic. is a speaker in reverse essentially. As long as shows have "contemporary" orchestrations (pop, rock, gospel etc.) and the vocals need to be present in the mix, mics cannot be placed so far away from the source (a mouth) that they amplify as much of the background noise as they do the actual sound from the actor.

I have never noticed any of the microphones. Granted I am in the mezzanine half the time.

Little Women was the first show I saw that I remember, and I distinctly remember twelve year old me sitting in the front row of the mezzanine at the Virginia Theatre wondering what that thing was on all the actors' foreheads. It was distracting for maybe half the first act, and ever since then I've just been disregarding mics. I don't even remember if half the shows I've seen had head mics, mostly because I just don't look for them.

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For anyone interested in the size of head mic packs, this video shows Stephanie J. Block having hers put on for Anything Goes. They hide it well under her wig, but it is pretty sizable. And it has antenna sticking out of it and everything!
http://www.playbill.com/multimedia/video/4973/Stephanie-J-Block-Quite-Becoming-as-Reno-Sweeney-in-Anything-Goes

Better yet, why not just surgically implant power packs and mics in actor's upper lips, gums, chins, as soon as they join Equity?

I always find that the wires running down the backs of shirtless men (like in Ghost) sort of ruin any sort of illusion of spontaneity.

There are some mic packs that are smaller than the size of your hand (Shure Audio manufactures one that comes to mind) and the actual mic element can vary in size and shape as well. Sennheiser currently has one mic that is about the size of the head of a match.

Choice of mic and placement involves many many many factors, and size of the mic element isn't the CHIEF concern, but certainly a factor for the sound designer.
The closer to the mouth, the more natural the sound pick up will be. The mic CAN be concealed completely with an actor's natural hair, but with a wig, you want the mic element to not be covered by the wig lace, which could create the sound of static if it moved and rubs the mic. Forehead placement or a 'headset' mic (I don't get why people here refer to them as air traffic controllers.. hyperbole much?) provide a better sound pick up that doesn't distort the voice, where as over the ear, certain sounds / pitches can be distorted. if the actor has to change wigs, that is also a factor, since you don't want the microphone accidentally ruined during the wig change if it is in the way..

Personally, I don't MIND visible mics in pop / rock / modern / non-realistic shows, but a noticeable mic can be awful in a show staged in a more naturalistic fashion.

As far as microphones in rain scenes, there ARE microphones that you can get wet. DiCappo manufactures one such element. I've seen it used to stir a glass of water and it worked just fine immediately after.

Part of the issue, to me, also seems to be the frequent use of the same stable of designers and the union contract and the producers. Certain designers - Scott Lehrer comes to mind - who do a great job, especially in hiding microphones and making the show natural. However, a LOT of designers who have been around for a while don't always like to delve into newer technologies and stay with what they are comfortable working with... the union contracts for designers also only requires them to speak to a couple of shops to supply the various elements, so they stick with shops they know. Sound systems are rented, so a lot depends on what the shop has in stock. if the shop doesn't have it in stock, the Producer can chose to buy new elements for the system and the rental house may buy them at a discount after closing, but that depends on what the producer has in budget and if the rental house agrees.

I have major issues with the super visible headset type in most shows. It's OK in Rent because it was part of the show's "look" and itself makes a strong statement that gels with the themes (nonconformist, nontraditional, rock/pop, rebellious, yada yada...The purpose there was to integrate the mics with the show's overall design and spirit, which was achievable by simply showing instead of hiding them.

But I can't stand seeing those types of mics in shows where integrating them as part of the visual message is not only unimportant but unnecessary. Not to mention a far stretch since I can't think of how a show not distinctly like Rent would benefit from the aggressively visible little arm pointing at every cast member's mouth onstage. It gets on my nerves because the rationale behind that is usually that it looks "cool."

Which is why 99.9% of high school productions have casts composed of telemarketers. It's so effin kewl, man! Rockstar. *eye roll*

As for people who cry over that "wart" on so-so's forehead or cheek, I bet they're also the type of audience members who just don't "get" theatre and are then easily irritated by anything that tells us THIS IS LIVE THEATRE.

How frustrating it must be to not "get" what you're watching, not because it's somehow confusing, but because they're oblivious to that "so fake but somehow manages to be more real than the real thing" aesthetic that is just one of the features that makes live musical theatre so incredibly thrilling and unique. To think that a small lump on a noggin readily shatters some illusion makes me glad I'm perceptive enough to anticipate a lack of boring reality upon that stage--where it doesn't belong in the first place!!!! LOL.

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