With only 362,000 inhabitants, the small country of Iceland, situated between Europe and the Americas, is winning big time. With more than 10 premieres per year, the National Theatre of Iceland attracts more than a small number of customers. Kristinn Gauti Einarsson is the leading sound engineer at the theater. His main job, together with his three full-time colleagues is the sound design for all shows. This means: refining, rehearsal, refining, rehearsal, show. “Precision is way more important because it is not a onetime show like at a festival,” explains Einarsson.
The 32-year old graduated from the FIH Music College in Reykjavík before joining the theater as a production audio technician. Together with his team, Einarsson is now responsible for five locations with the largest theater accommodating an audience of 500 people. For its wireless systems, the National Theatre of Iceland opted for Digital 6000 with 32 channels of SK 6212. With its metal housing, it became the perfect tool in their day-to-day business, while allowing a higher channel count with digital transmission—and it has been a significant investment for the small country.
It’s the long-standing relationships within the theater that make work worthwhile for Einarsson.
He is currently working with the same musical composer, set designer and director for the sixth year, and now embarking on his 13th year at the national theater. “It’s so amazing to start new, great shows with the same team. Our collaboration and coordination get better all the time. And we are successful because 90 percent of the job is communication—and good communication makes good shows.” The sound engineer, who has been playing drums for several bands since elementary school, also likes the simplicity of the product. “We sometimes have three different shows per day. So, ease of use has been crucial for us. The system we used before was much more time consuming.”
Kristinn Einarsson’s most recent project is the second edition of the show Þitt eigið leikrit (Your Own Play) which will debut in spring 2020. In this special show, the audience is able to influence the direction of the act via remote control.