On December 30, 1933, more than 2000 people attended the
Suffolk Theater\’s grand opening. Local media declared it \”The Radio City
Music Hall of Long Island.\” The last remaining movie house built by architect
R. Thomas Short, and the last remaining large art deco theater on Long Island,
the Suffolk Theater entertained generations of moviegoers until closing its
doors in 1987.
The building sat empty until 2005, when Dianne and Bob
Castaldi purchased it, with a vision of creating a modern performing arts
center. Recently reopened after a lengthy renovation project, the venue retains
much of its interior décor and charm, while now presenting as a multi-use,
state-of-the-art dinner theater with flexible seating, digital projection, and
a surround sound system featuring Renkus-Heinz PNX and TRX Series loudspeakers.
The theater\’s original raked seating was removed and
replaced with a multi-tiered design that allows for varied configurations of
tables and chairs, accommodating everything from concerts and performances to
dinner theater or movie screenings.
The venue\’s audio, video, and lighting systems were
designed with that versatility in mind, explains systems designer Stuart J.
Allyn of Irvington, NY-based A.D.R. Studios, Inc. \”The goal was to provide
smooth, even coverage throughout the entire audience area, with proper time
domains that would have the sound emanating from the stage, regardless of the
seating configuration.\”
Allyn chose a pair of PNX121 two-way 12-inch loudspeakers
for the main system, with two CFX218 subwoofers for low frequency
reinforcement. Ten TRX62 boxes comprise the secondary surround system, as well
as providing coverage to the upper and under balcony areas. The boxes were
custom painted to blend seamlessly with the venue\’s walls. The system was
installed by Young Equipment Sales of Hauppauge, under the supervision of
Charles Stursberg, Director of Audiovisual Theatrical Lighting and Theatrical
Rigging Sales.
Allyn points to pattern control as a major factor in
selecting the Renkus-Heinz system. \”The TRX62 is my favorite over- and
under-balcony system,\” he says. \”Their dispersion is exceptionally
wide, particularly for a box with such a small footprint. The documentation on
their coverage patterns is exceptionally true and reliable. Their trapezoidal
arrays really do array beautifully.\”
Coverage is pointless without great sound, of course.
\”Renkus-Heinz voices their boxes with a real belief in the human
voice,\” says Allyn. \”When I hear vocals coming out of these boxes,
they sound like they should even before I touch an EQ. That\’s very important to
me. Intelligibility, warmth, depth, character — that\’s what the human voice is
all about, and it translates to the instruments in the orchestra. If you get
human voices to just sound right, you have done your work. And the Renkus-Heinz
boxes do that beautifully.\”
