Project Challenge

This 290-seat community little theatre in Glasgow hosts amateur drama, children’s performances, film screenings and small live music events. The original stone walls and high vaulted ceiling create strong mid-low frequency standing waves and uneven sound distribution. Dialogue is muddy during plays, vocals get lost during musical numbers, and audience members at the back complain they can’t follow the plot. The theatre needed acoustic tuning that works for both spoken word and live performance, while respecting the listed building’s historic interior character.

Our Solution

On side and rear walls we installed a grooved and perforated resonant acoustic panel system, paired with mineral wool infill and rear air cavities. We ran acoustic simulation on the theatre’s volume and geometry, then precisely tuned the slot and perforation ratios to target the 250–1000Hz mid-low frequency standing waves causing most of the clarity issues. The whole system hits NRC 0.90, delivering balanced full-band sound absorption suitable for both speech and live music. On the ceiling we used high-density fiberglass acoustic tiles, NRC 0.90–0.95, to control overhead reflections and even out sound coverage across all seats.

All panels meet EN 13501 Class A fire safety for UK public assembly venues. We used a warm dark-wood effect wall finish that complements the historic stone interior, no modern industrial look.

Project Results

Speech intelligibility improved by an estimated 47% across all seating areas, with dialogue now clear even from the back row. Musical performances have clearer layering and tighter bass response. The theatre can now reliably host drama, music and film without extra temporary sound gear, and community group booking volume is up 32%.