Installation

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14 December 2016

The venue - one of the most respected and important receiving and co-producing dance houses in the world - recently underwent a major refurbishment, as detailed in the June 2015 issue of LSi.

Emma Wilson and Christian Wallace from Sadler's Wells, plus the specialist teams from Stage Electrics, Stage Technologies, Carr and Angier and GDS led the tours from the impressive auditorium up to the dizzying heights of the grid and flying system. Members then reconvened for a lively networking lunch before taking the opportunity to further explore areas of specific interest. The busy and insightful day finished with tea and cake.

Look out for details of the next PLASA B

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14 December 2016

With regard to acoustic excellence, buildings don't come much more impressive than the Oslo Opera House, home of the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet. The acoustics at this stunning, waterside building are so good that no amplification at all is required for opera performances. Here, the design is literally all about sound, from the interior spaces and the shapes of the walls and stage, to the materials used for construction.

Although the acoustics at the opera house are world class, there are plenty of occasions when a loudspeaker system is needed. Often, recorded music is used in ballet produc

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14 December 2016

From 06 April 2016 local planning authorities will have to consider noise impacts on new residents from existing businesses, under an amended permitted development right that allows offices to be converted to residential use, without the need to obtain planning permission.

The amended Order means developers will now need to seek prior approval from the local planning authority that any noise mitigation measures proposed are suitable to ensure that nearby theatres are protected before a change of use from an office to residential building can be carried out.

Theatres Trust said, "The Trust welcomes the changes to the Permitted Developm

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14 December 2016

Located at the gateway to the university, the new $82m arts centre - designed by architect Pfeiffer Partners in collaboration with Theatre Projects, acoustician Nagata Acoustics, and AV consultant Sonitus - gives Chapman University a characteristic architectural icon designed to meet the needs of their award-winning Conservatory of Music, and the Departments of Music and Theatre.

The building features the 1,044-seat Julianne Argyros Orchestra Hall, a remarkable and versatile multipurpose theatre. Theatre Projects worked with the design team to create an intimate auditorium - with a mezzanine, side boxes, and two levels of b

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14 December 2016

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14 December 2016

The new VUE sound system in the John Lance Arena consists of four arrays and two zones of fill speakers. The two arrays that face the North and South sides of the arena each are made up of four VUE al-4 Subcompact Line Array systems and one al-4SB Flying Subwoofer System. Each of the two arrays facing the East and West ends of the arena are comprised of six al-4s a

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14 December 2016

Says the Trust, "We are pleased that the Culture White Paper recognises the absolute importance of the arts and culture in people's lives - in education and the economy; within local communities and internationally. Whilst the ambition of the White Paper shares much with Jennie Lee's paper of 50 years ago, in our own 40th Anniversary year we agree that the economic challenges faced today are very different.

"So we welcome initiatives to promote the role of culture in place making through the new Great Place scheme; improve access to the arts through the new Cultural Citizens programme; and support the development of the historic built environment through the establishment of new Heritage Action Zones.

"We look forward to playing a full and active role in th

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14 December 2016

GAS worked closely with Tameside Council, choreographer Stacey Maurice who directed almost 200 dancers for the performance and creative producers Stone Soup who led the multi partnership project.

The opening event attracted over 10,000 people to celebrate the rebirth of this iconic piece of English history. The large brick Italianate building fell out of use 40 years ago and was on the at English Heritage at risk register but until funding of £3 million from Tameside Council, Heritage Lottery Fun

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14 December 2016

Vrindavan is the birthplace of Krishna and the spiritual capital of India. The project is the result of 30 years of work and investment by ISCKON (The International Society for Krishna Consciousness) who are managing the design and construction process.

ISCKON has built a design team with some of the world's leading design firms. Theatreplan was selected for its "world class pedigree, collaborative and creative approach" to auditorium planning and technology design.

According to Theatreplan's project director for VCM, Brad Maiden, "This project presents a unique opportunity for Theatreplan to emba

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14 December 2016

Says the Trust, "As the voice for theatres we use our knowledge of policy and practice to promote the value and benefits of theatres in use. We want live theatre to have a place in everyone's lives.

"We are committed to delivering a more powerful campaigning voice. Our expert advice will be more visible and more influential in the planning system and within the theatre industry. We will create new opportunities to discover more about theatres, and we will increase the levels of capital grants and funding we provide."

Chair of the Theatres Trust, Tim Eyles, says, "Our new strategy and visual identity mark the start of an exciting next

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14 December 2016

At PLASA Focus Leeds, the organisation will be holding a seminar Theatres Trust 40 on 11 May at 2.15pm, where show visitors are invited to join discuss "what we need to be doing today to protect theatres for live theatre tomorrow". The Trust explains, "Throughout PLASA you will also be able to find out how we can help you with advice on planning and development, resources to make theatres sustainable, and financial assistance through grants, and hear about our latest work with theatres at risk."

The discussion and debate from Theatres Trust 40 will be developed at Conference 16: Protecting Theatres on the 21 June at the New London

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14 December 2016

A storey tent of 25m by 40m serves as an entrance hall and VIP room. A true eye-catcher is the facade which has been personalised in a beautiful way, referring to the Munt's pediment in the heart of Brussels. The entrance and covered terrace were luxuriously decorated with wooden walls, wooden ceiling and a beautiful new bankirai floor. This highly qualitative decoration was maintained on the inside as well. The cloakroom was walled by

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14 December 2016

Says the Trust, "In this milestone year in the history of the Trust we will examine the state of our nation's theatres and discuss their future. We will consider the past and present influences on theatre architecture and design; the provision of existing and new theatres in response to city and government devolution; changing demographics; housing delivery and community and audience demand.

"We will then look to the future, and the potential for the next 40 years, and ask: What kinds of theatres will we need to build, and how will we find the resources to do so? How should we be asking existing buildings to adapt and change? What impact will the popularity of digital distribution of live theatre have? H

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14 December 2016

This valuable addition to the Grade II listed theatre has made the venue more capable than ever of accommodating large scale productions, particularly musicals, and indeed earlier this month opened Motown The Musical to critical and audience acclaim. The theatre now also provides additional dressing room accommodation and increased on-site office space. To help facilitate the refurbishment, Unusual Rigging was engaged on each of the three phases of the construction process, the last of which was completed in February 2016.

Ja

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14 December 2016

In Round Eight, the Theatres Trust has awarded the following projects:

Theatre Royal Winchester receives £5,000 towards its 'Tower Street elevation - urgent fabric and structural repairs' project, to restore the weather-damaged Tower Street fa

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14 December 2016

This was a major construction programme and Stage Electrics were involved on-site in the realisation of this transformation for over four years working to the design brief created by Charcoalblue (theatre consultants), Buro Happold (engineers) and Bennetts Associates (architects).

This project was a huge collaborative effort with a number of different contributors all handpicked by the RSC. More recently, Stage Electrics have been engaged by RSC in a technical refit of The Other Place, a space created to house the company while their main theatre was being transformed. The RSC technica

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14 December 2016

Leopard's remarkable flexibility and versatility made it the choice for two very different venues. The 1,200-seat Grand Hall at Studentersamfundet (Student Society) in Trondheim uses Leopard to support community events such as theatrical performances and conferences, while the Leopard system at Oslo's 650-capacity Vulkan Arena primarily powers hard rock shows.

"When we first saw Leopard we were amazed by its size," reports Torgeir Aadland, project consultant for audio renovations at the Grand Hall. "It was easily one of the smallest in its class, and we had some concern about it performing to our standards. But Leopard has provided excellent sound quality even at the highest levels, and gives us even horizontal coverage - it's eve

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14 December 2016

When the company was granted lottery funding for a technical refit, Graham Cutting, senior lighting technician at Sadler's Wells was keen to install new follow spots based on a system of tracked suspension mounts and brought Doughty Engineering on board to help turn the concept into reality.

Graham said, "I'd started looking into the idea previously, but at the time we simply didn't have the funds to make it happen. Following the Arts Council grant, I realised that we could look at this new system which would allow us to address two issues that the existing system was causing.

"Firstly, being on a lighting bridge, we often had the need to remove or relocate one or all of the 4

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14 December 2016

Built at the end of the eighteenth century as a palace for Prince Charles of Nassau-Weilburg, the beautiful building of the Koninklijke Schouwburg was transformed into a theatre in 1804 and is now one of the oldest theatres in The Netherlands. It hosts a programme of international theatre productions, musicals, cabaret and dance, in addition to a season from the award-winning Amsterdam Baroque Opera, and plays from its own national theatre company, Het Nationale Toneel.

Having undergone extensive refurbishment from 1997-1999 to modernize the venue, it was apparent that, 15 ye

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14 December 2016

"We take a lot of pride in the sound of our room," said Tamara Fuller, The Velvet Note's owner and nightly head-of-ceremonies. "We call it 'the acoustic living room,' and we've done everything we can to make it the very best way to experience live music."

"Until recently, the only thing that wasn't five stars about The Velvet Note was the PA system," explained Bob Bakert, an Atlanta-based guitarist, vocalist, composer, and pro-audio veteran who regularly graces the venue's stage. "I had heard Danley Sound Labs systems before, and I knew Danley's fantastic phase-coherence and fidelity could elevate

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14 December 2016

The 2000-capacity St Charles Campus auditorium has a regular Saturday afternoon service and two Sunday morning services, as well as a number of larger events throughout the year, including special worship nights and visiting touring acts. The Sunday services are streamed live over a dedicated fibre network live to the church's other three regional campuses. "We put a high value on production," says Montanari. "Concert-style audio, but probably not at quite as high an SPL!"

As most production crew and artists at the church are volunteers, the challenge for Montanari was finding technology that could deliver a big step up in quality, a

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14 December 2016

"When I first heard the Leopard-based system in our Sala Energia, I was so excited and enthusiastic that I was moved to tears," recalls Piero Fumagalli, owner of Arcadia Cinemas. "I sensed immediately that the clarity, dynamics, and musicality of the Leopard arrays represented a major improvement over the previous system.

"This new Meyer Sound system is our investment in the future," continues Fumagalli. "Audiences are now willing to pay more to experience a film in the Sala Energia. We have

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14 December 2016

The CRC02-DTC, the FT-DTC and the FT01-Q-DTC - are all thermostatically controlled for optimised heat management in 19" racking installations.

Digital control gives refined and super accurate heat management via continuous temperature minoring and 'set-and-forget' fan control. All the products are optimised for quiet running, have over-temperature alarms and benefit from running off a universal power supply.

The units are engineered to the robust and reliable specifications common to all Penn Elcom products

The CRC02 thermo exhaust blower is a completely new 2U virtually silent (22.5 dBA) fan exhaust unit designed especially for use with 19" equipment rack units, to expel air from the front of the rack unit.

It can be

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14 December 2016

"The previous system was no longer adequate for the events held in the arena," explains Scott Bray, WJHW consultant. "The administration wanted sound reinforcement that was musical and would bring the game day experience up to fan's expectations. They also installed a new scoreboard during the upgrade for similar reasons."

One of the design goals was for the PA to fit above the new scoreboard, keeping sightlines clear. To this end, Bray specified six EAW lin