Mathew DeVore: The Power of Sound
Every Season, ON Media celebrates Arts Heroes in our state, this year ATC’s Sound Supervisor Mathew DeVore was among those chosen! Read more about Mathew and his path to ATC’s Sound Department in the article below originally published by ON Media.
If the goal of every live theater production is to strike a chord with the audience, Mathew DeVore has made it his life’s work to succeed in one of the most literal ways possible.
The Sound Supervisor for Arizona Theatre Company believes sound ensures deeper understanding of what we’re experiencing. In live theater, he says, sound is like a character with an ability to set mood, convey emotion, announce location.
“There is something powerful about truly understanding sound, the science of sound,” DeVore says. “What we do (in the sound department), it moves people. It moves thought. … There’s something very magical about sound.”
DeVore has produced magic at ATC since joining the staff as sound engineer in 2006. He succeeded his beloved mentor, the late Brian Jerome Peterson, as Sound Supervisor in 2019.
“It was an honor (to be offered the job),and of course I took it to continue his legacy,” DeVore says.
DeVore traces his fascination with sound to high school theater when he saw the sound console during his performances The Power of Sound in Grease (Kenickie) and Cinderella (the prince). He went to college thinking his passion would lead to a career in broadcast radio.
College didn’t work out. But a chance connection to the Conservatory of Recording Arts and Sciences in Tempe led to an internship at Herberger Theater Center in Phoenix, which set him up for career success in live theater sound.
“It is the best experience and atmosphere for me to be in,” DeVore says of his desire to reach theater-goers through sound.
“It’s more or less about what sound does for the soul, whether it’s music or specific frequencies,” Devore says about his passion. “Sound resonates to the core. Everything has a resonating frequency. Sound is everything.”