A design goal of the theater was to have no equipment that could be easily seen. Many creative tricks were used that are consistent with the gothic theme. The Runco VX1000c DLP projector is housed in a custom decorative wrought iron cage that pulls from the metallic elements found higher up in the room’s sightlines. One must look closely to even know that there is a projector hidden in the ornate cage. As a project for the future, there is room to use a thin stone, called mica, to create a lantern-like lighting fixture under the projector that will be part of the overall lighting design. Bronze angels adorn the sidewalls of the room and merge with the curved ceilings to create a cozy yet non-linear look in the room that really works.
Lighting design includes some unique effects. Even on the brightest days, the room is pitch black when the automated drapes are drawn. The front of the room features a low custom equipment rack with laser-etched metal doors, which were actually created by the client for the room. The lower than waist-high equipment rack includes a stone top and a rich dark mahogany wood finish that looks stunning with the lights up and disappears when the lights go down. Directly above the low equipment rack is the 92.5-inch Stewart Filmscreen 16:9 Firehawk screen, covered by a vertically drawn red velvet silk drape just like in the classic theaters of years past. When you walk into the room, Judson has two red lights illuminating the drapes, creating a lush sheen that makes an impressive first impression. Other lighting tricks include the use of a number of “moon lights,” which are low-voltage lights that are slightly green, which create a moonlight effect that diversifies the style of light in the room and adds to the visual drama of the room. Other more traditional low-voltage lights are used, including small spots to highlight the angels on the sidewalls and glass bead gimp on the chenille covered groin vaults. The HVAC vents are creatively installed in the ceiling to look like four black lighting cans.
There is no question but that the theater is stealth. The Triad Bronze front speakers are hidden on the sides of the screen, with the center speaker located above the screen. For this application, a perforated screen was not used. Custom grille covers were made by Judson to give Evolution’s staff the ability to easily install and service the speaker system while keeping them visually concealed for the client’s guests. Issues of comfort met with the topic of acoustics when designing the fabric walls to accommodate the side and rear speakers. Judson designed a pattern for opulent silk to be installed onto the walls in front of an absorbent mix of carpet padding and Dacron upholstery wrapping. Without removing a section of the fabric wall, one can’t see the side or rear channel speakers. Evolution and Judson struck a compromise for placement of the speakers that allows for swirling surround effects but never reveals the physical location of any speakers.
Acoustically, most rooms are too “live” or reflective. However, sometimes dedicated rooms address this problem too aggressively by adding plush carpet, upholstered walls and sonically absorbent furniture. In many ways, an over-dead room is sonically worse than a bright one. Jay Frank at Evolution and Judson Davis worked together to select surfaces that varied from soft and absorptive to more reflective and alive. The stone on the top of the equipment rack and installed on some of the columns of the sidewalls of the theater provide harder surfaces to contrast with the furniture, carpet and fabric walls. A gorgeous coffered ceiling was installed down the middle of the room to create a visually striking effect as well as an acoustically diffuse surface which becomes the icing on the acoustical cake – and make no mistake, this theater sounds sweet.
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Lighting design includes some unique effects. Even on the brightest days, the room is pitch black when the automated drapes are drawn. The front of the room features a low custom equipment rack with laser-etched metal doors, which were actually created by the client for the room. The lower than waist-high equipment rack includes a stone top and a rich dark mahogany wood finish that looks stunning with the lights up and disappears when the lights go down. Directly above the low equipment rack is the 92.5-inch Stewart Filmscreen 16:9 Firehawk screen, covered by a vertically drawn red velvet silk drape just like in the classic theaters of years past. When you walk into the room, Judson has two red lights illuminating the drapes, creating a lush sheen that makes an impressive first impression. Other lighting tricks include the use of a number of “moon lights,” which are low-voltage lights that are slightly green, which create a moonlight effect that diversifies the style of light in the room and adds to the visual drama of the room. Other more traditional low-voltage lights are used, including small spots to highlight the angels on the sidewalls and glass bead gimp on the chenille covered groin vaults. The HVAC vents are creatively installed in the ceiling to look like four black lighting cans.
Acoustically, most rooms are too “live” or reflective. However, sometimes dedicated rooms address this problem too aggressively by adding plush carpet, upholstered walls and sonically absorbent furniture. In many ways, an over-dead room is sonically worse than a bright one. Jay Frank at Evolution and Judson Davis worked together to select surfaces that varied from soft and absorptive to more reflective and alive. The stone on the top of the equipment rack and installed on some of the columns of the sidewalls of the theater provide harder surfaces to contrast with the furniture, carpet and fabric walls. A gorgeous coffered ceiling was installed down the middle of the room to create a visually striking effect as well as an acoustically diffuse surface which becomes the icing on the acoustical cake – and make no mistake, this theater sounds sweet.