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BETTER MANAGEMENT
BM-5
A Leading Authority on Sight Lines and Theatre Design Discusses His Findings Regarding the Comfort of the Patron and Seating Choice
Determining Desirable Seating *
It is well worthwhile for the exhibitor to know where, in the auditorium, the patron likes best to sit while viewing the screen performance. It is important that as large a percentage as possible of the seating positions be considered desirable for viewing the performance by the patron. At least 80 per cent of the seating positions in any motion picture theatre auditorium should be, without hesitancy, considered a satisfactory and desirable seating position for the average patron. While an ex¬ tremely comfortable chair may be inviting to the patron, its position in the auditor¬ ium may easily detract from its value if the viewing position is undesirable. There is no chair manufactured which can over¬ come the physical discomfort caused by the poor posture which has to be assumed from undesirable viewing positions. There is also no chair manufactured which can overcome the eye-strain experienced in sitting in poor viewing positions.
The basic means for insuring a maxi¬ mum number of desirable viewing posi¬ tions is found in the original horizontal and vertical shape planning of the auditor¬ ium. However, the quality of the sound and light projection of the motion picture may influence the desirability of a partic¬ ular seating location to a certain degree, as, for example, the intensity of screen light, amplitude of sound, and the size of the projected image may render seats which may ordinarily be considered too far from the projected image desirable by an increase in their values. However, viewing positions which are too far to one side of the projected image cannot be im¬ proved by adjustments in the projection mechanism. Of course, such increases may prove impracticable or have a harmful effect on other seating areas.
The proper approach to modern motion picture theatre design dictates that a care¬ ful relationship be made of: (a) highest efficiency of geometrical form of a seating design; (b) the limitations of the mechan¬ ical means of the projection of light and sound; (c) the limitations set forth for seeing and hearing as dictated by the physiology of the eye and ear. It may be asked whether or not it is worthwhile to make such a detailed study of all these factors in planning the motion picture auditorium. The answer is entirely con¬ trolled by the amount of efficiency which one cares to bring about in the design or use of the theatre structure. It does seem though that the high real estate, construc¬ tion and maintenance, and operative costs warrant giving every possible consideration to increasing the efficiency of the viewing areas. There are some additional factors
* Re-printed from The 1942 Theatre Catalog. March 18, 1942
By Ben Schlanger
which will influence auditorium planning, such as emergency exit requirements, ac¬ cessibility of seats with maximum of ease, and the auxiliary spaces which serve to make the entire theatre function as a unit.
It has been proven that for both eco¬ nomic and acoustic considerations a mini¬ mum number of cubic feet of auditorium volume per seat is desirable. It is fortun¬ ate that the maximum percentage of de¬ sirable viewing positions can be achieved in motion picture auditorium design when the above state minimum cubical volume per seat is developed.
There are two important factors which control to a large extent the minimizing of the cubical volume and the efficiency in obtaining the maximum number of desir¬ able viewing positions. These factors are:
1. The aisle arrangement of the seating plan.
2. The design of the main floor slope and the pitch of any upper level seating tier or tiers which may be incorpor¬ ated.
In the very earliest stage of motion pic¬ ture theatre auditorium design, there is only one fact which is definitely estab¬ lished, and that is the seating capacity which is desired. There is one additional fact which has been a fixed item in most instances in the past, that of the shape of the plot of ground upon which the theatre structure is to be built. While the shape of the ground naturally would be a definite form in all cases, the tendency now is to use larger plots of ground because it has been proven that the average community motion picture theatre does not have to be located, on costly ground, so that in most instances, the plot of ground seems to be large enough to allow complete flexibility in determining the shape of the theatre auditorium structure.
Knowing the seating capacity desired, it is necessary to determine which would be the most efficient type of auditorium de¬ sign which would best fit the capacity. The possible types are as follows:
1. The single aisle;
2. The double aisle, each aisle being against a side wall;
3. The double aisle, each aisle being on either side of the center bank of seats with seats existing between the aisles and the side wall;
4. The triple aisle, an aisle on the cen¬ ter line of the auditorium and an aisle against each side wall;
5. The triple aisle, the same as No. 4 with the exception that the walls are pushed out, thus permitting seats be¬ tween the outer aisles and the walls;
THE EXHIBITOR
6. The quadruple aisle, an aisle against each side wall and two other aisles so that three sections of seating are formed across the width of the audi¬ torium.
7. The quadruple aisle, same as No. 6 with the exception that the side walls are pushed out, thus allowing seats to exist between these outer aisles and the walls.
Each one of these types is further sub¬ divided into additional types in accordance with the vertical disposition of the seating design as follows:
a. Single floor.
b. Single floor with stadium section.
c. Overhanging upper seating areas.
Most of the laws written governing the construction of motion picture theatres allow 14 seats in width between two aisles and seven seats between the side wall of the auditorium and an aisle as a maximum. In isolated instances, this number of seats is either decreased or increased by one or two chairs. In the various types of aisle arrangement schemes heretofore listed, schemes Nos. 1, 3, 5, and 7 are the most efficient because in each one of these cases there is a minimum of one aisle width to 14 seats. In the other schemes there are additional aisle widths needed without producing any additional capacity. Scheme No. 7 would rarely come into use for motion picture theatre design because of the extreme wide angle viewing positions created when more than 42 chairs are used across the width of the auditorium. Scheme No. 5, while being very efficient, is diffi¬ cult to adapt because sufficient emergency exits cannot be developed along side walls of the auditorium. Although scheme No. 3 is similar to scheme No. 5 in this respect, scheme No. 3 is adaptable because side wall exits are not required to the same degree due to the lesser number of seats across the width of the auditorium.
Schemes Nos. 1 and 2 are infrequently used since under proper design conditions they do not produce a capacity of more than approximately 400 seats unless an overhanging upper tier of seating is in¬ troduced. It will therefore be found that schemes Nos. 3 and 6 are the most widely used. It is important in both of these schemes whenever possible to have at least 14 seats between aisles or 7 seats between the wall and an aisle, and if the building code permits, this number of seats should be increased accordingly. The highest efficiency in aisle arrangement is important if a maximum number of desirable view¬ ing positions are to be produced.
( Continued on page 8)