We spoke with Luke Walchuk, our Resident Sound Designer and Audio Engineer, bringing his skills to the Dock Street Theatre once again in our production of CLUE: ON STAGE. Get your tickets to the show here, and read on to learn more about his artistic process in designing the sound and creating the original score for this murder mystery romp!
1) CLUE: ON STAGE is known for its mix of mystery, comedy, and suspense. What drew you to this particular play, and what aspects of the script did you find most exciting or challenging from a sound design perspective?
CLUE: ON STAGE is, without a doubt, a comedy, and a pretty silly one at that. However, the comedy only works against the serious stakes of murder and danger. As a sound designer, my biggest challenge is to help support both the silly and the serious. It’s important to have a suspenseful atmosphere because we need to believe that these characters are afraid for their lives. On the other hand, I have a hand in helping some of the jokes land as well. The challenge there is making sure the sounds don’t come across as cartoonish. It’s this balance that I found really interesting in working on this show.
2) Mystery plays often require careful use of music to build suspense and enhance the mystery-solving aspect of the story. How did you approach creating the original score for this production showcasing the mystery as well as the comedy?
My first priority in creating the score for CLUE: ON STAGE was to make sure that the music supported the wide variety of moments in the show while remaining a cohesive piece from beginning to end. I didn’t want it to feel like a collection of disparate pieces of music chosen on a moment-by-moment basis.
I approached this goal in two ways. First, I chose my instrumentation ahead of time and restricted myself to only using that sonic palette throughout. I made sure to include instruments that could support both serious moments and more comedic ones. I’ll go through some of my choices in more detail in a moment.
My second strategy for a cohesive score was to use repeated themes throughout the score. There are a few melodic ideas that come up again and again. Sometimes it’s a note-for-note repeat of the same theme, other times it’s a reworking of it, but the same ideas are threaded all the way through.
The instrumentation really helped me set the tone for this production. In early discussions with director Colin Waters, it was established that the production would be very much inspired by classic mystery and noir movies, as well as by the CLUE movie from the 1980s. The play itself is often performed with a live pianist, but Colin wanted a fuller sound for the score. With this in mind, my first choice for instruments was a fairly obvious one: orchestral strings.
With this basic idea in mind, I chose to lean in to the melodrama of the movies that inspired us and decided to add a theremin to the mix. If you’re not familiar, a theremin is an electronic instrument that is controlled via two antennas – one for volume and one for pitch. The player doesn’t touch the instrument at all, but moves their hands through the magnetic fields surrounding these two antennas in order to manipulate the sound. The resulting sounds are eerie, haunting, and frankly a little bit cheesy. Perfect for the balance I aimed to strike in tone.
I also felt that the setting of CLUE: ON STAGE called for the kind of stately, heavy-handed drama that can only be achieved with a pipe organ. The organ is a versatile instrument, but in the context of spooky scoring is best known for its boisterousness. CLUE: ON STAGE definitely benefits from moments of boisterousness.
Finally, I needed a solo instrument for some of the lighter passages. Something with a little bit more lively expression than I could achieve with the organ. Starting with a particular moment that calls for a bit of tango, I landed on the clarinet. The clarinet is a versatile instrument that is at home being both somber and playful. The tone is pleasant across its entire range, and it turns out that it plays very well with pipe organ.
Having assembled this palette of sounds, I was able to keep my score unified but flexible.
Listen to Luke’s original score below featured in CLUE: ON STAGE’s show trailer!
3) CLUE: ON STAGE often involves quick sound cues to accentuate comedic moments, surprise reveals, or suspenseful scenes. How did you choreograph and execute these sound cues to maximize their dramatic impact?
One of the keys to moments like this are careful choices of the sounds themselves. There is a lot of exuberant noise coming from the actors themselves in this play, so I have to make sure that the sounds don’t get lost in the hubbub. Making sure that they are loud enough is certainly key, but they also need to be long enough that they don’t get missed. They also need to be different enough from the noise happening on stage. Using higher-pitched sounds than the voices on stage help to make them stand out. I also often will accentuate them with very low-frequency, punchy sounds that the audience feels more than they hear. This really adds to the drama of anything from thunder (obviously) to the impact of a murder weapon, um, doing a murder.
With all of that being said, I do have to exercise some restraint. My sounds shouldn’t be so prominent that they take the audience out of the experience. They should complement what’s happening on stage, not distract from it.
4) Collaboration with the rest of the production team is crucial in theater. How did you work with the director, set designer, lighting designer, and other team members to ensure that the sound design aligns with the overall vision of the production?
Collaboration is absolutely the most important aspect of this whole thing. I try, on every show I work on, to make sure I’m checking in frequently with the director to make sure we are on the same page. This show in particular was written specifically to be scored, and therefore required even closer collaboration than usual. I had most of the music written, at least in draft form, by the time rehearsals started. The sound effects followed soon after. This way, our Director Colin Waters and the cast knew exactly what to expect and were able to choreograph their movements to the music. They were also able to reach out to me and adjust things as we went. With sound effects, it’s very helpful for the actors to hear them as much as possible in rehearsal. If they’re expected to react to, say, a thunderclap or a gunshot, it’s best that they have that available early.
I also worked closely with our Lighting Designer Caleb Garner. This show, as you might expect, is full of thunder. This is the most obvious need for collaboration between sound and lights. But it doesn’t stop there! Caleb also needed to understand the timing of the music and other sound effects in order to create his beautiful looks and effects. In many cases, we would discuss an effect together, and often even gave each other ideas throughout the process.
5) What is your approach to designing and programming sound effects for specific moments or scenes that require precise timing and coordination with other elements of the production?
Again, this is all about collaboration. As I mentioned in the previous question, having sound effects in rehearsal is very helpful with developing timing. It’s also crucial that I communicate closely with the Stage Manager. Imani Lloyd is responsible for making the sound effects happen exactly when they need to, as well as coordinating all the other aspects of the production. She knows, down to the syllable, when each cue needs to go and is truly the central nervous system of the production. I also try not to get too precise about where I think cues need to go. Imani and Colin have been rehearsing the play night after night, it is important that I trust them to know when things work best.
6) Finally, what excites you the most about our audiences experiencing CLUE: ON STAGE and hearing your original score and sound design?
From a personal perspective, I’m always excited for a show that involves a lot of composition. Creating music is my favorite part of my job, and I love to share that with audiences. But I’m more excited because this isn’t a presentation of my music, it’s the product of dozens of people each putting their creativity and passion into the production. I’m so excited about the set, props, and costumes (designed by Adam Jehle, Aline Toloto, and Hayley O’Brien respectively), but I’m also endlessly impressed by everybody else working behind the scenes, from the whole costume and scene shops to our backstage crews, and the folks in administration as well. That’s why I love making theater – it’s all about the group effort and no single person is essential.
Get your tickets to see CLUE: ON STAGE, running October 18th – November 5th, at CharlestonStage.com.
Luke Walchuk has worked in the live sound industry in one form or another since 2004. He gained experience in cruise ship entertainment, amusement parks, live music, and corporate audio before deciding that theatre was the most creatively fulfilling work he could be doing. He went on to earn a Master of Fine Arts in Sound Design and is especially happy to be here at Charleston Stage.