West Side Story

Client:

Opera Australia

Role:

Sound Designer & FOH Engineer

West Side Story - Handa Opera

“West Side Story” is widely recognized as one of the most intricate musicals to date. The performance’s complexity is further enhanced by its staging on one of the largest outdoor platforms ever constructed, surpassing the dimensions of any indoor theatre globally.

 

Jake was invited to serve as the Sound Designer for “West Side Story,” produced by Opera Australia, and he accepted the opportunity without hesitation.

 

The primary challenge associated with this production lies in adapting a musical traditionally performed indoors to an outdoor stage, while contending with variables such as wind, rain, and temperature. This introduces consistency challenges across each performance.

 

To address the concerns surrounding stage monitoring, the decision was made to equip the entire cast with wireless in-ear monitors. This technology enabled performers to hear the orchestra and fellow cast members effectively amid the wind on stage.

 

Beneath the stage, the 40-piece Opera Australia Orchestra was responsible for managing 70 channels of audio from the orchestra pit.

Additional challenges emerged in delivering a theatrical-quality sound experience to an outdoor audience spread across a vast area. This presented its own set of obstacles that needed to be addressed.

Audio Specs

Total of 170x Audio Inputs & 60x Outputs

 

FOH Control:

Digico SD7 Quantum

TC Electronics System 6000

2x Bricasti M7

Eventide H3000 DSX

TC Electronics 2290

2x Avalon 737

2x Distressor

2x DBX160SL

Wavetool Server

Fully Redundant Qlab System

 

Monitors:

Digico SD7

Waves Extreme

 

RF:

16x Channels of Axient (Leading Cast Main Mics)

40x Channels of UHF-R (Leading Cast Backups & Chorus)

16x Channels of PSM1000 (Leading Cast IEM)

10x Channels of SR2050 (Chorus IEM)

 

Signal Distribution:

3x DiGiCo 32bit SD Racks

12x Optocore Nodes

 

FOH Performance System:

12x Lacoustics V-dosc

30x Lacoustics DV-Dosc

18x Lacoustics SB218

100x Quest MS801 (Surrounds)