Avgoustos Psillas of Autograph was looking for an alternative solution to another manufacturers older loudspeaker for a complete proscenium system with surround and fills at Hackney Empire for Sleeping Beauty, the seasonal pantomime.
Awash with gilt and velvet, the historic Hackney Empire is one of the new surviving Frank Matcham fin de siècle theatres, and Avgoustos Psillas’ first challenge was to counteract an acoustically ‘bright’ room - featuring a lot of hard surfaces - and a loud show exacerbated by a full house of screaming children.
Because the band is basically positioned in the stalls, and the audience takes an active part in the show, the system has to be loud. But due to highly reflective surfaces in this venue, the coverage and focusing also have to be very precise in order to minimise unwanted reflections.
