Hofstra Drama 20 – Sound for the Theatre

Location: Al Hirschfeld Theatre during intermission at a performance of Moulin Rouge

Sounds Heard: 

• constant chatter from all directions 
• background music from the Moulin Rouge sound track or as learned in this class the “framing effect. “
•  announcement bells that intermission is coming to an end and to go back to your seats. 

Golden Theatre, 7:02pm, 2/19/15: A 7pm performance of “A Delicate Balance” on Broadway

Farthest: Sirens from outside, the soft tread of actors’ feet on the stage behind the curtain. A woman down in the orchestra section seems to fancy herself a big star and laughs heartily so the whole room hears her.

Medium: A woman twenty feet away from us asking quite loudly if the people sitting in front of her can “sit back a bit, please.” An impatient usher giving directions to the bathroom. Hushed chitchat about what the show might be about, or about what celebrities might be in attendance tonight.

Closest: The stranger on my left is taking his sweet time unwrapping his Kit-Kat and the sound is driving me CRAZY. Michael gushes to me over how excited he is to see Glenn Close onstage. The person directly behind us has forgotten to turn his phone off — it rings loudly, and he scrambles to find it buried deep in his bag.

Sound levels: generally people trying to keep their volume down and not draw attention to themselves as the show was just about to begin. last-minute arranging and chitchat before the houselights go down.

One word: Tingling

3 essentials: Unwrapping a candy bar, hushed chitchat, cell phone ringing & subsequent fumbling.