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[Philip Thi]

We're re-working our existing stage (it's currently too tall and narrow) and widening it.  What's the minimum recommended dimensions for a stage to hold the following:

1 drum/ with shield
1 e. grtist with amp
1 ac. gtrs, no amp
1 keyboardists, no amp
2 singers

3 floor monitors

We're at about 12ft deep by 16ft wide right now.  It looks like it will fit, but I don't know if I'm not considering anything.  It probably doesn't leave much room for decorations and we will need to place a screen above the singers.

Thanks

[Justin Bartlett]

Gosh, I would want to double that in both dimensions.  That's an awfully small stage.

[Philip Melton]

It is always better to build as large of a platform as you can to leave plenty of room for concerts/events/musicals etc.

With that in mind, a typical drum riser is anywhere from 6'x6' to 8'x8'(and larger, depending on the hit size). Not saying that you need one, just giving an idea about how much space a full kit with shield (maybe a wedge?) would take up. After the drum set, you are left with ~4' of working space on either side and roughly the same in front.

You could make it work, but things are gonna be pretty tight with instruments, DI boxes, mic stands, monitors, AND people. I would recommend AT LEAST 8'-10' more on your width, and 4' more in depth. It's difficult to say more without knowing anything about the actual dimensions/layout of the room

Remember that only you know how much the stage will be used and what purposes it will serve at your church. Make sure it is built right to meet as many of the church's needs as possible.

Good Luck!
-Philip

[John Fiorello]

I agree.  Bigger will always be better in this situation.  We built a stage not too long ago, took measurements of everything and then at the last minute made everything a bit bigger.  Since then we've torn down and set up multiple times, and each time, things have grow.

The drum set takes up another foot, we've added another amp, an extra couple stands, a few more lights, a second amp rack, etc.

The thing is, we weren't "planning" on adding any of this when we were first expanding, and if we just went with what we thought would work with what we had, we'd be tearing it down and building a new one right now.

How tight would it be if your keyboard player decided to add another keyboard (that couldn't be stacked) or the drummer added a mixer and a floor tom, or the acoustic guitar player wanted to add a floor fx processor?  Or if you added another 2 singers?



So, I'd go as big as possible, at least half the size of the room  (kidding)



just my 2 cents though,

JF

[David Sumrall]

Can you tell us more info on the space???

Typical stages we put in for bands with temp risers are usually built of a standard 4x8 riser concept.

Then the depth is usually at least 16 deep in the smallest config and 24 deep in most.

Width is usually starting at 24.

If your PA is ground stacked be sure to plan for its space.

I would try to make is as big as you can fit at least in width.

Then depth will greatly depend on several things including lighting, room, seating, PA hang etc.

In a permanent thing I would try and at least plan for double the depth of the minimum needed for the band and all other known things. Then you have some room to pay with for flex from a real tight the band setup , add a choir, dance, drama, set pieces, another band up front, etc.  

If you build it they will come.

my two cents!

David

[Dan Johnson]

I travel part-time with an indie Christian band and the minimum stage size we require is 24' W x 16' D.  This is for a 4-piece band with everyone on IEM so there's no wedges taking up space on the stage.  We have an 8'x8' drum riser and amps for bass and electric go on either side of the drum riser.  That's actually 3 electric amps and 1 bass amp (lead guitar plays through 2 amps, lead vocal plays acoustic or electric depending on song).  The 3 guitar players all sing so they are standing across the front of the stage.

Even at 24'x16' it can look a little bit crowded.  The less crowded the stage appears, the more professional it will look.  I would never do a smaller stage than that for us as long as we have the ability to dictate the size.

16'x12' for what you are doing sounds pretty small.  If you could double the size of it, I would do it in a heartbeat.  Of course, I realize space limitations and budget is always a factor but any amount larger that you can make it would be well worth it.

[Brad Weber]

I agree with David, we need more information such as the overall size of the space, the shape of the stage, the height available, whether you have wing space, how the stage relates to the space, what functions other than the band noted may occur in the stage area, how large of a drum enclosure you have, whether the keyboardist is a single electronic keyboard or multiple keyboards/piano/organ (no surprises like the keyboards including a concert grand), how the stage relates to the audio system and whether you might you have to change that if you made certain changes to the stage, etc.

Also think in terms of potential growth, for example you did not list bass, but should you accommodate the possibility of adding a bass player or any other performers?  Are there any visual considerations, either aesthetic or physical sightlines?  Do you need to incorporate any ramps or ADA access?

[Karl P(eterson)]

I agree.

The smallest "auditorium" we have (330ish seats) has a stage of 16Dx32W, this is in addition to roughly 16x24 of wing space to prep people.

This is still "tight" for 3 singers and a 5 piece band. It also gets really creative to stage any proper productions.

My new stage has ended up roughly 38Dx60W with roughly 1000sq ft wing space and over 4000 sq ft of support areas such as storage, changing, and production rooms. This is in a "simple" 1000 seater.

That said these numbers are for us and our needs, we don't yet know what your needs are. Your stage may be fine, or it may need to get bigger.

Thow us some details.

Karl P

[Philip Thi]

Sorry guys...I didn't get the email notification of the replies...

Here's some mroe info. The room isn't too big (30'x70') WxL and only holds around 200.  I'll attach a pic here of the current and the plans (actually we already did the demo).



Philip

[Philip Thi]

Here's what we're working towards...



It'll be 12' deep at the 2 side walls and 15' deep at the cross area and 15' wide.
It's not huge by any means, but it's what we have to work with.

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