<24-> 



PLAN FOR AN IMPROVED THEATRE 



ing, it might be managed by suspending the scenes on cords 



passing over rollers disposed in this form. 



Economy of In constructing the elevation of a theatre, the first consi- 



°^ ' deration is to economise apace, hence in the boxer,, as at 



IS'o. 1, fig. <-2 f after allowing the seats to rise one foot in live 



for the purpose of clearing the view from the heads of those 



below, if aline be drawn to the top of the scenery from the 



eye of the most backward observer, the bottom of the next tier 



of boxes must just commence at that line, as exhibited by dots. 



Theatrf s too . As it is advantageous in the Metropolis to make theatres 



lare for the more extensive than the direct voice of an actor can fill 



voice to fill 



with ease, with ease, it becomes necessary, to cull in the aid of re- 

 flected sound, and so to distribute the whole voice as may- 

 be deemed most important. I have in the enclosed sketch 

 supposed, that (in a tin aire where the extreme part of the 

 pit is 120 feet from the centre of the stage) the direct voice 

 is sufficient till within one fourth of the extremity of the 



this therefore building. Therefore, the roof is so curved, as to commence 



bv° l rellcct a ed ed its reflection at that point, as may be traced by following 



sound. the progress of the pulses of sound emitted by the actor at 



A. One half the roof, as far as C, is allowed to give the 

 sound it receives over this portion of the pit, and the three 

 tiers of boxes. The remaining half of the. roof is employed 

 in throwing its sound upon the upper gallery, increasing 

 the density of its reflection as the distance from the stage 

 increases. Although this gallery receives the influence of 

 half the ceiling, yet from the oblique position of it, it will 

 not catch more than half as much sound as the other por- 

 tion, which is fully required by the distance of the hind 

 part of the gallery, the direct sound being there c 25 times 

 less dense than in the quarter of the pit next the stage; 

 whereas by the reflection this disproportion will be reduced 

 to about, ten times only, and of course it will be as distinctly 

 heard as in the third quarter of the pif. 



Boxes. The ratio of sound in the three front boxes compared 



with that of the first quarter of the pit, is as T '~ to one; 

 this, by the reflection of half the roof will be reduced to 

 about 4, hence these parts will hear nearly as well as the 

 centre of the pit. In addition to this, the back of each 

 tier of boxes should be covered so as to give a focus of 



sound 



