CHICAGO — The Christian Youth Theater (CYT) is an after-school theater arts education program for kids aged 6 to 18, and it offers students an opportunity to develop their talents, interact with friends and learn to be a positive member of their community.
The organization recently sponsored performances of West Side Story, performed by top students from various schools in the area. The musical’s creative staff also chose to use wireless technology from Lectrosonics.
Kerusso Technology Group, Inc., East Dundee, Ill., provided sound reinforcement for the show. Daniel Chin, president, noted that “this production took place in the District 158 Performing Arts Center, which is part of the Huntley High School campus. Upon inspecting the 650-seat theater’s sound system, we determined the system to be inadequate for the type of project we were about to stage. On that note, the decision was made to have us handle all sound system logistics.”
“For West Side Story,” Chin continued, “we brought in our own loudspeakers, mixing console, microphone equipment—everything. We placed the FOH (front of house) mixing console and all the receivers in the middle of the audience, but there was no good way to run cabling up to the catwalks for the amplifier, as it would have not only created a hazard for the audience, but would also have required an exceptional amount of cable. For this reason, I opted to take a wireless approach.”
Chin selected a Lectrosonics D4 digital wireless system to circumvent the cables leading from the mixing console. The D4 is starting to be used as a special purpose system for location production in film and television and is designed for line level analog audio signals and AES/EBU digital audio signals. A D4T transmitter and a D4R receiver can be set up as a 2-channel or 4-channel system. It made the ideal tool to resolve the cabling challenge for the production of West Side Story, as Chin explained.
“While line of sight was short, at perhaps only 60 feet, it could have easily been a quarter mile cable run had we not taken a wireless approach. We configured the D4 system to handle the left-right stereo feed from the console to the main loudspeakers. The third channel was used for stage monitoring and the fourth channel handled off-stage monitoring to the green room, dressing rooms, and other technical areas. The result was a clean, uncluttered area between the mix position and the stage. Audio performance was first rate—with not so much as a single dropout.”
In addition to the Lectrosonics D4 system, Chin also deployed several wireless microphones that employ Lectrosonics’ Digital Hybrid Wireless® Technology, including a Lectrosonics LMa transmitter with an R400A receiver for lead character Tony and an IM transmitter in conjunction with a Venue receiver stocked with three VRS receiver modules for Maria.
The subsequent two wireless microphone channels were occupied by a Lectrosonics UT handheld transmitter with the company’s VMC cardioid capsule and a UH400a plug-on transmitter. The UT handheld transmitter was used for program announcements while the UH400a handled lines from voices not currently on-stage.
“The Lectrosonics gear really came through for us,” Chin said. “The clarity of sound was better than any we’ve ever had in that theater. The D4, which has such a wonderfully low noise floor, did its job of transmitting audio accurately without as much as a hiccup. Similarly, the wireless microphones did a great job and provided the freedom of mobility the talent needed to perform. Lectrosonics wireless technology made a world of difference to the success of this show.”
For more information, please visit www.lectrosonics.com.
