Bryanston takes drama seriously, and the well-appointed Coade Hall stages 15-20 student productions a year, providing plenty of opportunities for pupils to perform, design, direct and practise stagecraft. With its large proscenium arch stage, orchestra pit and sophisticated lighting and sound set-up, the Coade Hall also hosts numerous productions by professional touring companies, 'am-dram' and outside groups.
Two years ago, technical manager of the Coade Hall Stuart Myles spotted the RSS Digital Snakes, and, with the help of local dealer Stage Electrics, integrated these digital transmission systems with the theatre's analogue control equipment. Last year, the RSS M-400 digital audio console was released, which, together with the Digital Snake, makes up a complete end-to-end digital solution providing the purest sound possible. Myles swiftly made the decision to install the M-400 at front-of-house.
"We've traditionally used analogue consoles, and were slightly nervous about going digital," admits Stuart Myles. "However, Simon Kenning from RSS kindly left us the desk for a week, so that we could get to grips with it without any pressure, and we were quickly on terms. The Coade Hall is receiving shows but we're also a school, and have to consider all our equipment selection in the light of teaching aids. The students have found the M-400 very easy to get around, and we've found that it is very easy to teach someone to use it, whether at a simple operational level or delving deeper into its extended functionality as one gains knowledge and experience."
The Coade Hall is pioneering the use of the new RSS personal mixers, ordering three of the M-48 units which have just arrived onto the UK market. "These add another teaching dimension," says Myles, "enabling students to understand fully how monitoring works, and allowing performers to design and sweeten their own mix."
(Jim Evans)
