Theatre Design & Technology - Feb 1972 - 19

itself. If a monitoring system is to serve an area
adjacent to audience seating, and not acoustically
isolated, then in most cases it should employ a
delay system, so that any sound from the monitoring system reaching the audience is coordinated
with live and amplified sound from the stage.

* OFF-STAGE MONITORING
Purpose
Personnel off stage can hear live sound sufficiently loud in most theatres for most purposes.
However, there are times when a singer, chorus,
or other musicians must be precisely cued by the
conductor.

CLOSED-CIRCUIT TV
Closed-circuit TV is ideal for this monitoring purpose. It permits more precise cueing than audio
monitoring and will not cause any acoustical problem with unwanted sound reaching the audience.
Again, the system may be relatively simple, one
black-and-white camera covering the conductor
feeding one portable monitor located where the
musicians can see it. Again, the illuminance requirements are those imposed by normal stage
lighting.
A balcony-mounted camera can provide good
overview of the stage and conductor in many
cases.

* PRODUCTION COMMUNICATIONS
SYSTEM
Purpose
The production communications system should
faci litate voice communications between the stage
manager and lighting positions, fly gallery and loading gallery locations, the orchestra pit, trap room,
sound reinforcement and sound effects systems'
control areas, lighting control booth(s), and projection and follow-spot booths. Specific theatres
may have additional communications requirements.
A single-loop telephone type communications
system can most simply and economically meet
the needs of most theatres for a production communications system. Jacks, induction coils, retard
coils, and connections should be provided at each
station, permitting either handsets (telephone-type)
or headsets (switchboard-operator-type) to be used
at any station. Selective operation is usually unnecessary for such a system and adds cost; an alltalk, all-listen system is usually satisfactory.

ment or part of a regular extension system, possibly with a PBX board. Stations should include the
stage manager, house manager, any assistance
managers, coat room, box office, etc. If the costs
can be handled, the same handset should serve
the house telephone system, the outside phone
system, and the production communications system at the stage manager's console.

* SIMULTANEOUS TRANSLATION
SYSTEM
Purpose
A simultaneous translation system should be installed permanently when a theatre is to be the
site of international conferences and / or when audiences speaking different languages are to observe
the same productions, assuming they are translatable.

Choice of Systems
WIRED SYSTEM
In a wired system, a signal derived from the reinforcement system is fed to several translators,
in as many translation booths, via headphones. The
translators speak into microphones, each of which
feeds one wired translation channel. Each seat has
a jack for a headset (or a permanently-wired
headset), a selector switch allowing selection of a
particular translation channel, and a volume control.
WI RELESS SYSTEM
The wired system uses wire links between the
translators' microphones, and the listener's headsets, and the wireless system substitutes a radio
transmitter feeding a loop antenna around the audience seating area and one radio receiver, with selector switch, volume control, and headset, for
each listener, instead of the wired stations.

* EMERGENCY SYSTEM
This system would consist of a cartridge tape
machine with prerecorded messages for playback
into (1) the main house reinforcement system, (2)
the lobby system, and (3) the program monitoring
system. This system shou Id be operated by a push
of the button, with all circuits relay controlled.

* AUDIENCE RECALL SYSTEM
This system could consist of a tone generator
feeding the lobby and circulation-space system, or
a separate chime, horn, or bell system .

* HOUSE TELEPHONE SYSTEM

* A-440-TUNEUP

In addition to the production communications
system, a theatre should have a house telephone
system, either separate from outside phone equip-

An A-440 tone generator could feed that portion
of the monitoring system covering the musicians'
dressing rooms .*

THEATER DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

FEBRUARY, 1972

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