A renovation at a very swank Golf and Country Club I used to play put in a permanent, cushioned dance floor that went all the way to a wall where they wanted their entertainment. Then, they had an portable aluminum stage (approx 6' x 12')that sat on a portion of the cushioned floor.

My duo was the first group to play there after they made the "improvements'. It looked great, but was totally unusable.
1) Any shift of weight on the stage caused the aluminum to creak and squeak.
2) The creaks and squeaks were amplified thru mic stands with live mics.

The fact that the stage was so noisy was one thing...but the fact it sat on a cushioned floor - which permitted even more movement and noise from the aluminum parts - was unbearable.

The manager, maintenance guy and I all agreed I would have to move the duo off the stage to an adjacent area in the corner of the room. The move caused other problems relating to the proximity of tables to the band and it was one of those nightmare jobs that most of us have had at one time or another.

I am no prima donna, but I told them I couldn't play there again until they got the problem resolved. That may have ticked them off, because I have not had any other offers from them...and that is okay with me.

A lot of these fancy places spend tons of money making their venues look great with very little thought to practicality, positioning of speakers and accoustics.

Eddie