Getting Into Local Theatre - Part 2

So one of my first jobs in local theatre was running the sound board. Since I was working in television at the time, it was a natural step - I had certainly wrestled with audio boards and microphones before. But I’d never faced the controlled hysteria of running sound for a stage show.

The job mainly involved running the microphones for the actors. Remember, we’re talking about children’s theatre here, so for the young (and often soft-spoken) actors to be heard clearly - especially when they’re singing along with a band - they have to wear microphones.

For more than a decade, the standard for theatre mics has been some form of the lavalier microphone, which is a small wireless mic that features a battery pack that clips under the actor’s costume, and a tiny mic that is clipped to the front of the costume, or (more commonly today) is taped to the actor’s face.

The problem is, there are never enough mics to go around, so the actors must share, switching mics backstage - which means the sound board operator has to be careful to bring up the right mic at the right time. Every show, at some time or another, has had that moment when a backstage mic was turned on in time for the audience to listen in to a conversation that has nothing to do with what’s happening on stage.

Lots of other things can go wrong - mics can drop dead, or develop a short, or make horrible noises as the actor brushes against them. Of course, we've all heard the dreaded feedback noise.

To add to the confusion, the sound person also may be called on to insert sound effects at a crucial moment (doorbells ringing, dogs barking, sirens wailing, etc.) - and sometimes you just don’t have enough hands to cover all the bases.

Still, it’s a lot of fun, and you get to see all the shows for free. However, after I had run sound for quite a few shows, I had a moment of revelation. In the children’s theatre, we have young people working backstage as well as acting in the shows. They form the stage crew, moving around sets, running lights, helping the actors. Just before one show it occurred to me (I never claimed to be quick), why not let one of the kids run the sound board?

Sydnee Smirl offered to tackle the job, and I gave her what little training she needed - and for the run of the show, she ran the sound - and did a great job! At one point during a show, there was a problem with a mic, and I started to step forward to help - but before I could arrive, she jumped up, fixed the problem, and went back to work. Hey, I was impressed.

In fact, kids have run the sound on most of the shows First Stage has produced since then - and almost without exception, they’ve done the job as well - or better - than I ever did. It was one of the few times I didn’t mind being put out of work - and best of all, it’s a great experience for the kids. If you can handle a sound board, you can handle almost anything.

Emphasis on the "almost."

Next: Wearing the producer’s hat.