RETROSPECTIVE AND INTROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS

Ekweariri, Chidiebere S.

Department of Theatre Arts

Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education, Owerri, Imo State

ABSTRACT

Sound and sound effects, whether in the primordial nature or in the contemporary have always served the immediate and practical needs of the theatre. As a matter of fact, no production thrives without some level of auditory stimuli. Investigations have shown that the inherent and practical messages embedded in the play are communicated through the actions, inactions and vocal projection of the actors, without which meanings may be distorted and lost. The study also observed that the sophistication in sound application in the theatre, brought about by technological advancement has added another impetus and improved the quality of sound application in stage productions. It is however sad to note that some theatre houses and sound designers in Nigeria are yet to embrace this recent technological innovations. The paper therefore concludes that for these technological innovations in the area of sound and sound effects application to be tapped and harnessed, sophisticated sound and sound effects equipment should be procured and sound designers must explore the unlimited possibilities of the use of computer in sound design and application.

Key words: sound, sound effects and theatre