"I like to use the PM1D for classic, older style musicals," he says. "It sounds really good for this kind of show which, in this case, is very cinematic in its sound design. By cascading two PM1Ds together, it was also the only desk with which I could get the required number of input channels."
The show's high channel count stems from three main reasons. The first is that the18-piece orchestra is all multi-instrumental. "We have a lot of different instruments," says Owen. "For example we have four violin players - but one of them plays the viola for some songs. There is also a point where every member of the orchestra plays percussion. The show has lots of stuff like that, which adds a lot of light and shade to the music."
The second reason is that there are several big tap dance numbers which form Top Hat's centrepieces, so many of the40-strong cast have mics built into their feet and there are also a number of slope microphones in the floor. The third reason is all those hats.
"The hats were a major challenge for the sound design, without a shadow of a doubt," says Owen. "Every cast member wears a hat in virtually every scene. And it's not just top hats - there are wide brimmed trilbies, big sun hats - all types that can cause real problems with the sound from hairline microphones.
"Getting a natural sound from the actors was the priority and so many of them ended up wearing several microphones. For example the leading man has two on his head, one on each foot and three different hats, all of which have a mic in them. The show's radio channel count is huge."
Onthe output side, the show has a complete A/B rig, with every loudspeaker position duplicated to ensure that there are no issues with phasing.
"With so many people on stage singing at once and the show featuring a lot of scenes with couples being very close together, I had to design an A/B rig to eliminate any phasing between the omnidirectional mics," says Owen. "Even the reverb sends are duplicated to keep the sound as clean as possible."
With each orchestra member having a personal monitor, plus onstage foldback being built into the set, stage floor and roof, it becomes apparent what a complex sound design Top Hat has required. However, the PM1Ds have handled it with ease.
"We had both control surfaces throughout the production period and it was really cool to have Chris Mace, the production sound engineer, on one and me on the other, both able to quickly access anything we needed," says Owen. "For the tour itself we're using just one, but using two for the design and rehearsal stages was invaluable."
(Jim Evans)
