
A production as big as those at Sight & Sound Theatre requires big sound. Sight & Sound Theatres put on action-packed musical stage adventures that takes attendees on a journey alongside the walk of Jesus and the everyday people whose lives he changed. The story of Jesus is brought to life as a stage production also entitled Jesus, in two separate, purposefully similar venues, one located in Branson, Mo., and the other in Strasburg, Pa.
Epic production
To bring the story to the stage requires a 45-member cast, a zoo’s worth of live horses, dogs, pigs, goats, sheep, camels, alpacas and others, and one of the largest LED screens ever used in theatrical production (100 foot by 30 foot) and a surround sound system including Clair Brothers' C8 line arrays, CS218 cardioid subwoofer arrays and a growing collection of monitors.
“Because the two theatres are nearly identical, the logical idea was to keep the two performance systems as close as possible for a cohesive, consistent audience experience at both locations.” Jim Devenney, Senior Engineer, Clair Solutions

Gary Parke, audio integrator at Sight & Sound, explains, “The venues are almost the same except for one big difference. The control rooms at Strasburg are located behind the continental aisle, where the control rooms at Branson are at the top of the theater, so the Branson room feels slightly bigger. Also, the raised seating at Branson feels less closed in than Strasburg’s raised seating.”
Jim Devenney, senior engineer at Clair Solutions, the project integrator, adds, “Because the two theatres are nearly identical, the logical idea was to keep the two performance systems as close as possible for a cohesive, consistent audience experience at both locations.”
In's and out's
Devenney says, “We had restricted space in both venues to place the C8 side and corner arrays, but because of the C8’s multiple coverage angles of 90 degrees and 120 degrees, they more than handled the coverage and output we needed for the rooms. And to provide an even, very low-frequency response throughout the rooms as required for the show’s special effects and music, we installed two Clair Brothers CS218 cardioid subwoofer arrays. It’s a sound system that delivers on the promise of such huge on-stage productions.”