Specialising in sport, the John Madejski Academy will have capacity for approximately 1,100 students, but the infrastructure also includes a technically-equipped auditorium and separate dance/drama studio, provided by Leicester-based Hawthorn Theatrical.
Contracted to the main construction company, Costain, the company has turned to Martin Audio sound reinforcement components as part of its audio-visual design model - extending the company's relationship with the AQ series.
According to Hawthorn's installation manager Simon Ling, the versatility of the AQ series meets the many requirements of a general purpose assembly hall, while the textured light grey factory finish also provides a remarkable environmental colour match. "The AQ series is a great sounding product which fits within budget and does not require a vast amount of processing," he says.
The processing that is required is stored digitally in an Allen & Heath iDR8 DSP, while the different AV playback presets are accessed via an AMX remote hand-held touch screen.
The main assembly hall contains a demountable stage and 48 channels of lighting, controlled by a Zero 88 Frog; mounted on four lighting bars are generic (profile and fresnels) while a Sanyo projector fires onto a 5m x 3.75m drop down screen.
On the front bar above the stage are also clamped a pair of AQ15s (using Hawthorn's bespoke flying frames), reinforced on each side by a pair of the matching AQ212 subs. These are in-filled on the second truss with four AQ10s.
Hawthorn have also made provision for live mixing in the form of an Allen & Heath MixWizard 16:2, and rigged a mobile rack (including radio mics) which can either be plugged into the control room or wheeled down to the front of the assembly hall.
Finally, Hawthorn Theatrical has equipped the Drama Studio - where a single Martin Audio AQ12 is flown in each of the four corners - as well as a recording studio, which will also be used as part of the Academy's curriculum.
In addition to Reading and Paddington, the theatrical specialists have so far provided full staging and scenic solutions to Academies in Lambeth, Ramsgate and Northampton. They are scheduled to deliver three more during the course of the year.
(Jim Evans)
