I was lucky enough to work with Rob Summers during the summer of 2021 on John and Jen by Andrew Lippa and Tom Greenwald. 

John and Jen is a two hander musical with a band of five, and moves from sung through sections, to intense dialogue scenes.

The play is episodic, swiftly moving through time and space, and needs a nuanced ear and eye to capture all these changes. We had an experienced team, expertly brought together by Leon Kay and Michael Bradley of Bray Productions, and we were extremely fortunate to have Rob Summers as the key component to bring the sound dynamically to life. 

Mixing a live band of 5, in the confines of Southwark Playhouse’s 120 seater studio, making the sound dynamic and enveloping, a moment later drawing the ultra close audience into the fine emotional detail this intensely moving familial story demands, takes a very nuanced ear; being able to recreate this tiny dynamo of a show every night, matching the powerful singing voices of Rachel Tucker and Lewis Cornay with quietly spoken intimate exchanges takes a practitioner of enormous skill: 

Rob achieved all the above effortlessly, and was a lovely man to work with, unfailingly polite, courteous, warm and funny, you couldn’t ask for a better work partner.

Guy Retallack

Director

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"Rob is, without a doubt, by far one of the best in his profession. He has proven himself to be excellent at this job whilst maintaining a friendly working relationship with other departments."  

Chris Ma

Musical Director

Rob is a very competent and knowledgeable technician. His work on the show was consistent and of a very high standard and never were his duties on the sound desk ever question or criticised.

Roger Richardson

Company Manager

Rob's professionalism and charisma make him a pleasure to work with on any project! If you're looking for a number one sound operator or sound designer on your show, I would wholeheartedly recommend Rob Summers!

Michael Bradley

Musical Supervisor

"Rob's experience and passion allows him to deliver only the very best on every project he works on. I can not recommend Rob highly enough for all things theatre sound related."

Wayne Glover-Stuart

Producer

"On a personal level, Rob has shown a great deal of integrity and has been a delight to work alongside. Amiable and honest, he has never lost his passion for keeping the show at it’s absolute best."

Graham Hubbard

Resident Director

"His mixing ability is of the highest standard and his knowledge of theatre practices is with out doubt and is able to follow through to ensure that the job gets done." 

Tony Gayle

Sound Designer

"Rob is regarded as one of the industry’s best Sound Operators and Sound Designers. I would have no hesitation in engaging Rob on my future productions and projects."   

Daniel Sparrow

Producer

"Rob's ability to deal with ‘difficult’ personalities together with his obvious ability for mixing a large scale production made him an invaluable member of the team."

Nick Sagar

Sound Designer

"Rob was always concerned with the detail of the design, working hard to balance the clarity and quality of the vocals and music whilst serving the wishes of the director and producers and led the sound team well."

John Payton

Producer

"Rob Summers is a consistent, solid and dependable Head of Department. I would have no reservation in recommending him to future productions."

Crispian Covell

Sound Designer

"Rob has very good technical skills combined with a natural flair for mixing music and a solid, practical approach to problem solving. He also shows good skills as a strong team-leader and would be a valuable asset to any production."

Brian Buchanan

Sound Designer

"Rob's contribution has been consistently of the highest standard and has helped make this production"

Justin Teasdale

Sound Designer