This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, June 18, 2012 - Since the summer of 1916, the St. Louis Muny has been a beloved landmark, defining many residents’ summers with a musical relief from the heat, or at least a temporary distraction.
As Muny devotees head to "Thoroughly Modern Millie" this week or plan outings to this summer’s other six shows, they can look forward to something new. Its 2012 summer season will feature new technology to back up Millie, Aladdin and Joseph. Replacing the theater’s tried and true canvas backdrop is a state-of-the-art LED Scenery Wall.
The Scenery Wall, as the press release describes, involves the following parts and perks:
- 20’ in height, 25’ in width, and 6’ in depth;
- 25 4’ x 5’ panels, with 16 modules each;
- a total of 694,400 LEDs,
- making 185 trillion different colors;
- waterproof protection;
- heat resistance up to 113 degrees
- wind resistance up to 90 miles per hour.
And all for only 20,000 watts!
As inaccessible as this jargon may seem to technology challenged audience members, the LED Scenery Wall is expected to be a hit. Marketing Director Laura Peters is very enthusiastic about this new addition to the summer theater.
“For years and years, we used what we called a ‘sky truck’ way upstage to mask the backstage area, and to give our stage a ‘back',” Peters says. With three wood and canvas sky trucks, the MUNY’s backdrop always remained the same, resembling the horizon; only its lighting differed from show to show. Each production was given scenery with big set pieces transported on and off-stage between scenes.
“The Scenery Wall will basically take up the center section of the sky truck, and will be a changeable, integrated part of the full set,” Peters adds. With this addition, not only will the stage floor experience changes in set, but the backdrop will depict scenes from sea to sunset to saloon.
In a rendering for the set for this summer’s “Chicago,” the Scenery Wall flashes a newspaper headline while the lights of the nightclub twinkle around the edges. What used to be simply a covering for the backstage area is now a major component of the story-telling, creating a sense of space much more tangible to audience members.
But as late as last Tuesday, the Scenery Wall was being a bit of a diva. Peters said the state-of-the-art lights have to go through rehearsals and testing – just like anyone else.
“It’s like any rehearsal,” Peters said. “They’re still trying to figure them out like in any other technical rehearsal.”
She said she has no doubt the lights will be ready for “Modern Millie’s” premiere Monday. “They’re going to be fine,” she said.
The 2012 Muny schedule
June 18-24 "Thoroughly Modern Millie"
June 25-July 1 "Chicago"
July 5-13 "Aladdin"
July 16-22 "Dreamgirls"
July 23-29 "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor® Dreamcoat"
July 30-Aug. 5 "Pirates!" (or "Gilbert & Sullivan Plunder'd")
Aug. 6-12 "The King and I"
For more information: www.muny.org/
Not only does the backdrop have more pizzazz, it also has much more flexibility than the sky trucks. As Peters says, “One of the great advantages is that the Wall can be changed in just a few minutes’ time, so that if there are any designs that for whatever reason do not work, they can be altered easily and quickly.” It takes a mere 15 minutes to replace, rearrange and reprogram the Wall’s modules, so as the plot of the show progresses, images of its location can move right along with it.
The set is not the only aspect of the theater to benefit from this facelift. “The Scenery Wall will use far less electricity than needed for the 123 stage lights that we used previously.” In fact, a press release said that using the Wall will conserve 44,000 watts of energy that would have been used to light the canvas backdrop in previous years. Not only does this greenify the MUNY’s productions, as Peters said, “the heat generated will be far less, making the actor's experience that much more pleasant” – not to mention those in the front row.
All over the country, theaters are advancing sound systems, set pieces, and backdrops to enhance productions and attract a larger audience. Many theater buffs, however, have expressed disapproval of these advancements, arguing that the tech of the show is beginning to overpower the talents of the actors, the original focal point on stage, and the most crucial aspect of each show.
The Muny will have to see how the LED Scenery Wall plays.
(Intern Lauren Leone contributed to this report.)