Shining Star

Joshua Coulter

Good sound engineering is crucial in live theatre. A well-engineered sound design elevates a production, immersing the audience in the story while enhancing the impact of each scene. Getting it right is tricky. A big splashy show may have many different sound elements to bring together. Dialogue, music tracks, live instruments, sound effects, and more all need to be blended and balanced to ensure optimal clarity and emotional resonance. This is something Sound Engineer and Designer Joshua Coulter knows a thing or two about.

Josh got his start with Theatre Ancaster as a technical theatre co-op student in 2017. “I had just moved to Ancaster that year and was still trying to find my place and Theatre Ancaster offered that to me. I’ve been working with them ever since,” says Josh. He has made the most of his time, building an impressive skill-set that he puts to use during numerous Theatre Ancaster productions each season.

“I am a self-taught engineer,” explains Josh. “I didn’t go to school for this or take any formal training. I learned from people that were better than me and spent a lot of time practicing and making mistakes. I’m a bit of a perfectionist and that helps me continue to improve. I don’t think I could name a show that I have done that I’ve been completely satisfied with. There is always something that could have been done better, and that helps me make changes that better the next performance.”

Longtime company member and Mainstage producer Colin Lapsley has high praise for Josh: “His contributions to the company cannot be overstated. He excels at many areas that the public doesn’t see firsthand. His quiet excellence makes everyone else’s jobs easier, and all of our shows that much better. It is a pleasure to have his constant presence behind the scenes.”

Director of Programming, Sam Frisk, shares similar sentiments: “From the very beginning, Josh was tremendously helpful and thoughtful, and he went out of his way to make sure everything got taken care of. Since then, he has grown into someone we truly rely on day in and day out. I am glad to have him looking after the great number of things he takes care of for us, and I think we’re lucky to have him.”

When working on a show, Josh collaborates closely with the creative and production teams to ensure their vision is “sonically represented.” This is no easy feat. “There are a few challenges that come with the job, one of them being sound isolation,” explains Josh. “A lot of people may not know this, but not everyone who is on stage has their mic on at the same time. There are a lot of different mentalities behind mixing musicals and my strategy is a hybrid of all of them. I mix shows line for line. That means that only the people immediately speaking have their mics live through the PA. It’s difficult to get this right as you can easily miss the beginning of someone’s line or cut off the end of it.”

This season, Josh had the opportunity to work on the sold-out run of The Sound of Music. He identifies this production as a career highlight: “I knew that the Mainstage productions were the best of the best and that was a goal of mine that I set, I wanted to be good enough to mix a Mainstage show. Sound of Music was a culmination of the hard work that I had put in to be the best I possibly could and I’m forever grateful for that opportunity.”

When he isn’t perched at the sound console, Josh runs his own business and helps Theatre Ancaster in a myriad of ways. This includes moving sets to and from the Ancaster Memorial Arts Centre and even building the storage areas to house costumes and props at our new production warehouse.

It all adds up to countless hours of hard work in service of Theatre Ancaster. According to Josh, it’s a worthwhile endeavor: “The part I enjoy most about Theatre Ancaster is the sense of community and family. Everyone here is very welcoming and works very hard to support one another. I have seen so many fantastic performers come through Theatre Ancaster and it’s truly a privilege to watch them grow and be seen by our patrons.”