Masque Sound Delivers Integrated Solution for Broadway's Call Me Izzy

	Jean Smart in Call Me Izzy. Photo: Emilio Madrid

Masque Sound provided a fully customized audio package to sound designer Beth Lake for the Broadway premiere of the darkly comedic solo show Call Me Izzy, starring Jean Smart, which recently opened at Studio 54.

The project marks Lake's first solo Broadway credit after previously co-designing multiple productions, including Camelot, Uncle Vanya, and McNeal, all of which featured Masque Sound's support.

"Call Me Izzy was a fast and furious process," Lake says. "I reached out to Scott Kalata at Masque Sound, and he made it happen quickly and smoothly. There were a few equipment substitutions based on availability, but everything we needed came together without a hitch."

Lake and her team, associates Charles Coes and Megan Cully, successfully integrated a hybrid setup using elements of the Studio 54 house system combined with a custom rig from Masque Sound. "It was a great advantage to use some of the venue's Meyer Sound under balcony fills and surrounds," notes Lake. "It allowed us to reduce load-in time while still achieving full coverage for the deep space."

Lake built her system primarily around her speaker brand of choice: d&b audiotechnik, paired with Meyer Sound components from the house. "One of the things I particularly love about Masque Sound is their deep inventory of d&b speakers and their ability to incorporate that technology while still utilizing the house system," she adds. "We were able to achieve the sound I wanted for this production. Masque Sound was also wonderful in providing me with a Yamaha DM7C digital mixing console for its ample output capabilities and a Yamaha DME7 digital signal processor for delay matrixing and system processing, which is an essential element for the nuanced, music-infused production."

For Smart, Lake selected a DPA 4061 miniature lavalier microphone and DPA 6061 subminiature lavalier microphones combo, paired with Shure Axient ADX1M digital micro body-pack transmitters.

With an original score composed by T Bone Burnett and David Mansfield, the production is nearly entirely underscored. "T Bone, David, and I collaborated to shape the music to each dramatic beat," adds Lake. "The show is about language and the power of words, so ensuring intelligibility and texture throughout the theater was absolutely critical.

"Masque Sound has always been my go-to," Lake says. "They're not just accommodating but they're enthusiastic partners that consistently go out of their way to make what I need happen. They're professional, flexible, and always ready to try something new."

"Masque Sound was thrilled to follow Beth to Broadway," says Scott Kalata, director of sales, Masque Sound. "She's super-smart and always so well prepared. Everyone at our shop loves working with her, and we all look forward to supporting Beth as her career skyrockets as a premium sound designer."

Call Me Izzy opened on June 12 and runs for 12 weeks on Broadway at Studio 54.