Cat in the Hat audio manual
Version 2/11/2018

Operating the show

The sound operator needs to have a really good view of the stage so they can react to the performers actions. We have always placed the sound operator just behind the back row of the audience so they can see everything. 

The show

Have a look at the sound script provided to you by MTI. Look through the show in QLab and you shall see the corresponsing cues.

For the National Theatre production, the sound operator took 90% of the cues themself, rather than being cued by a DSM (also known as a show caller). The exception to this was the Voice-Over cues, for which the sound operator had a seperate cue list and Go button, and they were all cued by the DSM, allowing the sound operator to focus on the visual cues. If you are using a performer offstage to provide the voice-overs, you may wish to find a way to leave their microphone turned on (perhaps giving them a microphone that has an on-off switch built into it), though you will find moments when you need to bump their volume up. 

All Left and Right directions are from the view of the sound operator in the auditorium, not from onstage. If it says Left in the Cue List, it means Stage Right! It makes sense for the sound operator looking at it and for the wiring of sound systems which conventionally are wired left-right from the auditorium perspective.

In the show you will see references to hot-keys. These are buttons on your QWERTY keyboard that when pressed will always make a certain sound regardless of where you are in the cue list. These are the number keys 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 0 along the top of your keyboard, not the keys on the numeric keypad of your keyboard. You may want to mark your keyboard with these sounds as it’s easy to lose track in the heat of the moment! Watch the video of the show to see how we used them.

1 - SMALL BALL 1
2 - BIG BALL
3 - SMALL BALL 2
4 - BIG BALL SHORT
5 - DRUM ROLL 1 ON
6 - DRUM ROLL 1 CYMBAL
7 - DRUM ROLL 2 ON
8 - DRUM ROLL 2 CYMBAL
9 - SWISH L
0 - SWISH R

The Cat in the Hat is a REALLY difficult show to operate - there are a lot of cues very close together. Our operator was in rehearsals full-time from day one of rehearsals, and this is pretty much the only way they’ll be able to get good enough at it. The best way to learn how to operate the show is to practice alongside the Wide-Shot video. However when this was filmed Angus, the actor playing the Cat, had a knee injury so Sound Q’s 87 and 88 were skipped to accommodate for those performances. Normally the Cat would do a long run-up (drum roll), jump on to the box (cymbal), overshoot into the wings (the crash), then return onstage making karate chop actions at the chickens clucking in the wings!

The DVD made for commercial release has many cuts, additional sound effects and different pieces of music that make it unsuitable for practicing.

Many of the music cues can be cued in time with the music, for example Sound Q’s 56 - 65 in the Balancing sequence. The music sounds best if the operator presses “Go’ on the beat in sequences like this; it keeps the illusion of a continuous live band.

Pre-show and Post-show music

This is the list of music we used and that is supplied. You should obtain copyright clearance for them as necessary. If you cannot do so, then you should use pieces of music that you can obtain copyright clearance for. We chose music that kept the children entertained and often dancing through the pre-show.

1      Dy-Na-Mi-Tee - Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain 
2      Teenage Kicks - Nouvelle Vague
3      Spice Up Your Life - The Spice Girls
4      Heart of Glass - The Puppini Sisters
5      My Heart Stood Still - Stephane Grappelli
6      Mambo No.8 - Pérez Prado
7      Chihuahua - Luis Oliveira
8      James Bond Theme - Fanfare Ciocarlia
9      Hora Andalusia - Fanfare Ciocarlia
10    Hawaii Five-O - Robert Delgado
11    Jump In The Line - Harry Belafonte
12    Lucky Lucky Lucky Me - Evelyn Knight
13    Iko-Iko - Zap Mama
14    Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy - The Puppini Sisters
15    In the Mood - The Puppini Sisters
16    Life Goes to a Party - Benny Goodman

 

Dr. Seuss text, characters and images TM and © 2009 Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.P

For more information, please contact your MTI customer representative at (212) 541-4684, or visit our website at www.mtishows.com.