MJ the Musical, a new production celebrating Michael Jackson’s artistry that debuted in February at the 1,445-seat Neil Simon Theatre on Broadway, is supported with a sound design by two-time Tony nominee and three-time Olivier Award winner Gareth Owen employing d&b audiotechnik Soundscape immersive sound technology powered by the DS100 digital audio processor.

The production is centered on Jackson’s 1992 Dangerous World Tour, created by Tony Award-winning director/choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner producer Lynn Nottage. There are four musicians on stage and nine under the stage, and the entire cast sings live except for a moment in “Thriller” when the ensemble mics are covered by masks.

“I had not worked with director/choreographer Christopher Wheeldon or Lynn Nottage the writer,” says Owen. “Normally, when I get offered a sound design project, it’s because I’ve worked with somebody involved in the project before. In this case, the producer, Lia Volack, offered me the project because she liked my work on other shows.”

He adds that he didn’t have to explain the d&b Soundscape theory, and once the MJ producer and director heard it, they believed it would work. “I had used Soundscape on about 10 shows, so I was very confident that it would do what I wanted it to do,” Owen explains. “The lack of big speakers causing sightline issues on the proscenium was a nice plus point too: traditionally in theatre we fly line arrays on either side of the stage, what’s called a L/R system. With Soundscape you don’t have that problem. For MJ the Musical, all the speakers are across the top of the proscenium arch. There is nothing on the either side of the stage blocking sight lines.”

With the DS100 signal engine at its heart, Soundscape is designed to provide the user with two software modules that enhance creative potential. The En-Scene object positioning software allows for the individual placement of up to 64 sound objects in a given space, facilitating sound that corresponds both visually and acoustically. With the En-Space room emulation software, acoustic signatures of renowned concert halls can be applied to enhance or modify the acoustical reverberation of any given space, indoors or outdoors.

“We used En-Space to simulate different performance spaces,” Owen notes. “When Michael Jackson is supposed to be performing in a small intimate club, we use it to emulate that and when he is supposed to be playing a big stadium, we use different settings to accommodate that. We’re also using En-Scene in combination with the En-Snap software, which I co-developed. I love the way it works. Together with R1 for initial configuration and PA system tuning they make for an easy workflow.

With En-Snap, users can apply cues to control sequences within the Soundscape setup, making the live show workflow for Soundscape easier. Users can program production-specific transition times and recall safe functions in every cue, freeing up time from individually tracking sound objects to mixing the show.

Maxine Gutierrez, head of audio and mixing engineer for MJ, says, “As a mixer, I work to support both the stage, and to help tell the story with sound. En-Snap presents aural settings from intimate book to stadium resound, enhancing each scene on-stage to not only re-create moments in Michael Jackson’s life, but also extend that energy and emotion to the audience. As we collaborated on the balance of the mix for each scene and song, we really created our storytelling arc through sound. The Gareth Owen team invested into the details, allowing the mix to tell this story with dynamic ease. With d&b Soundscape and En-Snap, the team has honed-in a design that truly elevates the experience of MJ: the Musical.”

“I always use d&b loudspeakers for productions,” concludes Owen. “Every time we use Soundscape, we find a new way of extracting something else, something that we didn’t manage to achieve before, something that’s a little bit better, that’s a little bit cooler. It’s very exciting. We look at every show and see what we need. If you look at say, Come from Away on Broadway, that’s a point source system with no surround because that is what I feel like the show required – we try to modify to suit if you will. The MJ rig on the other hand is heavy duty – big line arrays above the stage, an extensive surround system, and a lot of low-end.”

d&b audiotechnik
Gareth Owen
Sound Associates
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