SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE - JOAN SUTHERLAND THEATRE

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE TRUST

Saber commenced design work on the Sydney Opera House’s Joan Sutherland Theatre with acoustic partners Muller BBM, theatre machinery experts Theatreplan and Scott Carver Architects. The brief from the client was clear: there was strictly 7 months of closure time in which to upgrade the rear stage lifts and overstage flying systems, replace all of the backstage technical systems, and upgrade the orchestra pit, sound systems and acoustics.

Our stakeholder engagement process is inclusive, respectful and drives outcomes as we literally put ourselves in musician’s seats in the orchestra pit to understand their experiences. We worked with staging technicians as they changed over sets in compact timeframes, sat with front of house sound and lighting engineers as they explained they workflow, and chatted with stage managers to ascertain how they presently ran their shows, their future needs, and often just to share stories of theatre life.

The results of our collective design work garnered rave reviews from users, critics and audience alike. The theatre machinery was built to scale overseas, transported and reassembled in situ. The orchestra pit – which had undergone rigorous acoustic testing and orchestra member input – was redesigned and reconstructed with variable acoustics.

The sound enhancement system, which included over 250 discreet speakers to assist with natural reflections of the orchestra, enabled the Joan Sutherland Theatre to receive its first positive reviews with regards to sound, in years.