What character has worn the most body mics at once?- Page 3

[lifeisacabaret]

Posted: 7/24/06 at 9:11am

Indeed- the sound designer and sound operators on RHS in the UK are able to very easily hide the mic packs- the system being used is the Trantec S6000, and the mic packs are very small and easy to hide.

See http://www.trantec.co.uk/html/trantec_prod_uhf_s6000.htm

[Gothampc]

Posted: 7/24/06 at 9:15am

One of the worst I've ever seen was "Bring in Da Noise..." Ann Duquesnay was so garbled the night I saw it. My friend and I could barely understand her.

[lifeisacabaret]

Posted: 7/24/06 at 5:22pm

That may not have been entirely down to the sound system/team. Sometimes, actors make mistakes and dont perform as they should


You know, I even heard that some actors are human- this came as a great shock to me.

[Fosse76]

Posted: 7/24/06 at 6:13pm

"actors make mistakes and dont perform as they should"

Or perhaps they are acting. It's not the job of the actor to time his or her performance to when his or her mic is on...it's up to the sound tech to keep up with the performer.

Posted: 7/24/06 at 6:23pm

"actors make mistakes and dont perform as they should"

"Or perhaps they are acting. It's not the job of the actor to time his or her performance to when his or her mic is on...it's up to the sound tech to keep up with the performer."

Ah, how much simpler and better things were before the age of sound techs and mics. Alfred Drake and Vivienne Segal never had trouble giving nuanced performances without the aid of mic or two

We might not have had over-sized barns like the Gershwin and the Minskoff were it not for mics

[lifeisacabaret]

Posted: 7/24/06 at 6:31pm

My comments, and indeed the comments my comments were refrencing, were not to an actor not being able to be heard or a microphone being off, they were to an actor sounding garbled and unclear. This of course could be the fault of the sound system, but it could also be the fault of the actor, with bad diction and enunciation.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 7/24/06 at 6:36pm

Mics are a BLESSING in many ways.. aside from the obvious fact that it allows an actor to save and preserve their voice. Mics have given us endless flexibility and possibilies in composed and in blocking and staging that would be a disaster umiced. it has also very muc opened the talent pool of who can handle an 8 show a week run.... in fact, many people worshipped on thsi board would have NO career had it not been for the advent of micing.

Now, the need for micing didn't rise from the need to "compensate for untrained peromaers", mics were introduced stylistically for rock shows sich as hair and jesus christ superstar and they were integrated into all shows out of necessity with rising spectacle.

no matter how strong your voice is, it would be impossible to get on a stage and sing a song over all of the background. the micing and increased sound levels are born out of the need to hide the sounds of all of the exhaust fans and automation engines used in shows. as the spectacle grew, so did the micing. now, one fan on a vari*lite may be quiet, just as one winch in a show deck may be quiet... but it is like a classroom.. 1 kid whispering is quiet.. 20 kids whispering is a din. sound designers have to overcome that sound bleed somehow.

Posted: 7/24/06 at 6:41pm

"Now, the need for micing didn't rise from the need to "compensate for untrained peromaers", mics were introduced stylistically for rock shows sich as hair and jesus christ superstar and they were integrated into all shows out of necessity with rising spectacle."

Sounds good, but not true. Mic were in use way before Hair and JCS. I would hardly call Carnival a rock show and that's the show where the stories about the flushing toilets being heard over the sound system started

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 7/24/06 at 6:43pm

i used hair and JCS as EXAMPLES because they are extremely well known shows of that genre.

[morosco]

Posted: 7/24/06 at 6:45pm

"...Alfred Drake and Vivienne Segal never had trouble giving nuanced performances without the aid of mic or two..."

Yes. You are right...however they would never be able to sing over this era's orchestrations. Compare the original orchestrations of KISS ME KATE and the recent revival. You'll hear what I mean.

[Joshua488]

Posted: 7/25/06 at 3:21am

Kiss Me, Kate is a wonderful example. I'm doing a production of it right now in a house that seats over 1500. The revival's orchestrations are crazy! I'm playing Paul and I made sure to ask, "I'm getting a mic, right?" My one song is "Too Darn Hot" and not that I need to depend on one, but... well, yeah... I actually do need one. It's a pretty large theater (about the size of the Gershwin, I'd say) with mediocre acoustics and I'm not THAT good that I can project to the back row of the mezzanine over a 20-piece orchestra blaring as loud as they can.

[BwayBaby18]

Posted: 7/27/06 at 12:14am

Lifeisacabaret... i ment to say that you couldn't understand her. With a microphone on. So what is the point of micing someone who doesn't care to use it.

[lifeisacabaret]

Posted: 7/27/06 at 2:51am

Indeed- some actors are so technically unaware they just dont understand that there must be a very slight alteration in their technique when they have a lavalier mic on. Ive had some actors project to the Nth degree even when they have a mic on, and its horrible to listen to. Severe words have had to be had!