The Chimelong Theatre’s circus tent theme informs its impressive rolling external façade.
Rightway delivers stunning panoramic sound to spectaculat theme park entertainment attraction
Henggin Island, China – October 2019 — The spectacular 6,700 seat Chimelong Theatre is the most recent addition to the Zhuhai Changlong Resort on Hengqin Island, joining Chimelong Ocean Kingdom, Changlong Hengqin International Circus City, and a spread of luxury hotels and park facilities. The theatre was designed by entertainment architecture studio Stufish, and opened in July 2019, after two years of construction and preparation. The building uses a circus tent theme to inform its impressive rolling external facade, which dominates a large, colourful two-level plaza.
The production inside is as epic as the architecture. The ‘Dragon Show’ brings together more than 300 performance artists from over 20 countries across Europe, Asia, and Africa. It combines cutting edge technology and traditional circus performance on a 270-degree panoramic ring stage to tell the mythological stories of Zhuhai fishermen – a fully immersive re-interpretation of the feast of water, land, and air, with the action taking place both on stage and over the audience.
48 L-Acoustics K2 in four hangs are positioned across the stage front, with 12 KS28 subwoofers flown centrally.
To match this ambition, L-Acoustics certified provider distributor Rightway Audio Consultants worked with the theatre to design a powerful sound system with full, even coverage across the large audience area, and accurate control over every element of the performance.
“Early in the process, the theatre’s production and sound design crew had a good idea of what they wanted to achieve,” says Rightway’s WenZhen Zhan. “First, they wanted to enhance the audience experience by providing audio that tracks with the moving stage positions of the performers and also they wanted the ability to move sound objects across the comprehensive overheads and surround system. Second, they wanted exceptional clarity and intelligibility.”
On first inspection of the facility, Rightway also realised that the significant water-based elements of the show and the high humidity in the venue needed consideration – one of the reasons why L-Acoustics K2, with its IP45 rating, was chosen as the primary element.
The full system consists of 48 K2 in four hangs across the stage front, with 12 KS28 subwoofers flown centrally. Fifty-five X12 account for monitoring, and the entire system is powered by LAX12 amplified controllers. The system makes uses of the L-ISA multichannel audio processor which provides spatial audio processing and object-based mixing facilities for the system. DiGiCo SD10 consoles were chosen for Front of House and monitor duties, the console’s native L-ISA Source Control allowing the system to be controlled directly from the console’s surface.
K2, with its IP45 rating, was chosen as water-based elements of the show and the high humidity in the venue.
With assistance from L-Acoustics Alvin Koh, Rightway used L-Acoustics Soundvision software to design the system. “We had a lot of help from L-Acoustics,” says Chimelong’s AV team. “L-Acoustics was very hands-on, with detailed training and support at the theatre, which really impressed the theatre’s staff.”
YuLong He, Sound Supervisor at the Chimelong Hengqin Theatre, added his own compliments: “It is the first time that we have used L-Acoustics products, but they provided excellent system training, which helps us to be even more professional. It is the dream of every sound engineer to own and use the world’s cutting-edge audio system and L-Acoustic is indeed the world’s top professional audio system manufacturer.
“The Zhuhai Changlong Resort is a very special place,” concludes He. “In its first nine months it attracted over eight million visitors and the Dragon Show at the new Chimelong Theatre will surely keep them coming back for more.”
12 K2 form each of the four main hangs.
About L-Acoustics
Founded in 1984 near Paris, France, L-Acoustics is the market leader in professional sound reinforcement technologies. With over 400 team members worldwide and offices in Paris, London, Los Angeles, and New York, L-Acoustics is present in over 80 countries via our network of Certified Providers. Focused on solutions that elevate the audience experience, more than 20% of L-Acoustics’ talent is devoted to R&D in the areas of acoustics, applications, mechanics, electronics, signal processing, and software development.
Recognized for pioneering the line source array, L-Acoustics continues to shape the future of the professional audio industry with L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound technology, a multidimensional, object-based approach to designing, mixing, and processing sound that results in extremely natural and intelligible audio and a more vibrant, and authentic connection between artists and their fans.
L-Acoustics technologies can be heard in places like the Hollywood Bowl, the NFL Cardinals State Farm Stadium or the Philharmonie de Paris, as well as the world’s top-grossing festivals, and on tour with world-class artists such as Adele, Pearl Jam, Lorde, and Depeche Mode.
