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Macky Auditorium

�鶹��Ѱ�����Boulder's historic Macky Auditorium, a preeminent cultural and civic gathering place, is getting a cutting-edge Dolby Live sound system, which can toggle between Dolby Atmos for immersive, large-format cinema sound needed for the Sundance Film Festival and live event sound enhancement for other types of performances.

So, if you have a quieter group on stage, say a string quartet, you would “feel you are on the stage with the ensemble,” said Rudy Betancourt, director of the �鶹��Ѱ�����Boulder Artist Series.��

“For musical theater, say you have a scene from ‘Oklahoma!,’ you will be able to hear crickets chirping behind you, birds above you and bees buzzing around you,” Betancourt said. “You are immersed in the scene.”

Speakers will be installed throughout Macky, including around the ceiling, with great care being taken to blend in with the theater’s historic, Gothic features and architecture. Custom-fabricated acoustic panels will be installed to further improve the quality of sound. These materials are removable. A new screen also will be installed.

Additionally, some seats in the front five rows will be removed to make way for a ramp allowing access to the stage. In addition, wheelchair-accessible seats will be installed in the front along with companion seating. ADA-accessible seating also will be added to the balcony.

A “hush box,” the term for the modern-day, digital projection booth, will be installed on the Macky balcony. Betancourt is also excited about lighting improvements.��

“If we view the Macky stage as a lab, we are updating what our students can use to be a lot more creative,” Betancourt said. “Giving them access to this technology that is not available at other institutions, gives our students an experiential advantage when they embark on their professional lives.”��

Roe Green Theatre

At the Roe Green Theatre, speakers will be added to the ceiling, providing additional acoustic functionality to the Department of Theatre & Dance, among other campus units who use the space. Roe Green Theatre is also getting Dolby Atmos.

The theatre will have a ramp installed for access to the stage, a hush box projection setup and new screen. And, after being on a wishlist for years, the 1980s seats are being fully replaced with state-of-the-art theater seating complete with drink holders. The theater also will get new carpet.��

“We're very happy about the festival-related upgrades to the Roe Green Theatre,” said Kevin Rich, chair of the Department of Theatre & Dance. “These renovations will transform our space into a high-quality cinema for the Sundance Film Festival in January, and our students and campus community will benefit from these enhancements throughout the calendar year.”��

Muenzinger Auditorium

Since the International Film Series is already successfully held at the 400-seat Muenzinger Auditorium, this venue requires the least amount of updating in order to host Sundance Film Festival screenings.��

To create a one-of-a-kind experience, for all screenings in Muenzinger, plans call for speaker arrays along the walls, and a new screen installed in front of its existing location to make room for new speakers behind the screen to accommodate Dolby Atmos immersive sound. Today, the screen is a curved wall covered with special movie screen paint. And speakers have to be physically wheeled into place for each showing, said International Film Series Director Jason Phelps, rostered in Cinema Studies & Moving Image Arts.

Phelps said the improvements will help heighten the experience of seeing films year-round for the more than 3,000 students and community members attending about 60 movies and a handful of panels each semester. Muenzinger also is getting some new accessible seating.��

“Coming out and seeing a movie in a theater is worth it,” Phelps said. “This helps solidify that mindset. It will be a dramatically different soundscape than what we have now.”

Beyond the physical upgrades, Phelps is excited for the Sundance Film Festival’s arrival in Boulder.��

“For our department, it’s a huge thing because �鶹��Ѱ�����Boulder is the only university in the country that can say the largest independent film festival in the U.S. is partially hosted on campus,” Phelps said.��