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| A passage through audience seating |
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| Section of the STAGE floor which projects towards or into the AUDITORIUM. In PROSCENIUM theatres, the part of the stage in front of the HOUSE CURTAIN, or in front of the PROSCENIUM ARCH |
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| A STAGE where the audience are seated on at least two, normally all four, sides of the whole acting area. Also called “theater in the round.” |
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| The part of the theatre accommodating the audience during the performance. Sometimes known as the HOUSE. |
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| The part of the STAGE and theatre which is out of the sight of the audience. The service areas of the theatre. |
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| An upper level in the AUDITORIUM. Often overhanging the orchestra or mezzanine. |
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| A kind of flexible studio theatre where the audience and actors are in the same room, surrounded by black MASKING. Doesn’t necessarily describe the audience layout, which can be easily reconfigured. |
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| A vertical PIPE in the wings on which lighting instruments are hung |
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| Room at the rear of the auditorium (in a proscenium theatre) where lighting and sometimes sound is operated from. |
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| Piece of MASKING that runs above the SCENERY horizontally, across the stage. Usually made of black velour. |
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| Part of the theatre front of house area where audience members can buy tickets. Most Box Offices are now computerized, and offer phone reservations. Some offer online (internet) bookings also. |
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| A walkway, giving access to technical and service areas above the stage or auditorium, or linking fly-galleries. See also CATWALK. |
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| An access walkway to equipment. Unlike a BRIDGE, not necessarily across a void. |
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| Imaginary guideline that runs upstage-downstage directly in the center of the PROSCENIUM ARCH or the center of the space. Abbreviated CL. |
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| Usually shortened to just 'cyc' (pronounced sike). The Cyclorama is a curved plain cloth or plastered wall filling the rear of the STAGE. Often used as a 'sky' backing to a traditional set, or as the main backing for a dance piece etc. The term is often loosely applied to a blue sky DROP. Although strictly a cyc should be curved, most cycs are flat with curved wraparound ends. |
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| Rooms containing clothes racks and mirrors (often surrounded with lights) in which actors change into their costumes and apply make-up. |
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| A large, flat-sewn piece of fabric usually with a scene painted on it. Often hung from a PIPE and flown. |
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| Mechanism, often found in a TRAP, used to raise and lower SCENERY into and out of the playing area. |
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| Flame-proof curtain that rides in the SMOKE POCKET, just upstage of the house curtain. In case of fire, this curtain seals the STAGE off from the HOUSE. |
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| A pipe that is dedicated to the hanging of lighting instruments |
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| Usually a 4’ x 8’ framework of wood or metal covered in fabric or thin plywood. It is a basic set piece used to construct walls, create MASKING, etc. |
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| High working platform at the side(s) of the stage (above RAIL) from which the flying lines are handled. Often are also the site for socket panels for connecting flown lighting apparatus to dimmers, and also sometimes a lighting position. |
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Definition
| High working platform at the side(s) of the stage (above RAIL) from which the flying lines are handled. Often are also the site for socket panels for connecting flown lighting apparatus to dimmers, and also sometimes a lighting position. |
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| Every part of the theatre in front of the PROSCENIUM ARCH or outside of the backstage area. Includes foyer areas open to the general public. |
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| Room close to the stage for the actors to meet and relax. |
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| 1) The support structure close to the top of the FLY LOFT on which the pulleys of the fly system are supported. Constructed from metal or wooden beams. 2) Arrangement of pipes from which lighting instruments are hung in a performance space with no flying facilities. |
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| 1) The audience (eg 'How big is the house tonight ?') 2) The auditorium (eg 'The house is now open, please do not cross the stage') |
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| House Curtain (Main Curtain/Grand Drape) |
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Definition
| A permanent fixture of most PROSCENIUM theaters. It is a decorative curtain, usually made of velour which separates the stage from the audience. |
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| House Teaser/Grand Teaser |
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| The top, horizontal, usually stationary, part of a traditional PROSCENIUM/HOUSE CURTAIN setup. |
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| Vertical masking found in the WINGS (often to hide BOOMS) usually made of black velour, but sometimes are hard FLATS |
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| Often made of black velour, any piece of scenery, soft or hard, that is used to hide the BACKSTAGE area and activities from the audience. See also BORDER, LEG and TAB. |
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| The area housing the orchestra. Originally, a lower section between the front of the STAGE and the AUDIENCE, although now describes any area around the stage housing the musicians. |
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| (Sometimes just RAIL) Area of the stage in a theater with a fly system where fly lines are belayed and manipulated. |
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| Usually 1 ½ black pipe from which DROPS, SCENERY or lighting instruments are hung. GRID is often composed of PIPE(s). |
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| Plaster Line (Setting Line) |
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| Imaginary line running across the width of the stage, in line with upstage side of the PROSCENIUM ARCH, which is marked on the ground plan and is used as a reference when planning furniture layouts etc. |
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| Usually a 4’ x 8’ piece of ¾” plywood with 2 x 4 framing. It is basic set piece used to create different levels on the stage |
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| Short for “property.” These include furniture, and other small objects manipulated by actors on stage |
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| The opening in the wall which stands between STAGE and AUDITORIUM in some theatres; the picture frame through which the audience sees the play. However, as there are many different audience layouts now, many theatres (particularly multi-purpose studio theatres) have no Proscenium Arch at all, or it may not be decorated as such. |
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| A large “turntable” built into the STAGE itself, used to help change SCENERY |
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| A sloping stage which is raised at the back (upstage) end. All theatres used to be built with raked stages. Today, the stage is often left flat and the auditorium is raked to improve the view of the stage from all seats. |
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| Refers to any show-specific (that is, not a part of the theater itself) construction, drop, etc. that is intended to be seen by the audience and create the world for the actors |
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| Refers to any MASKING or SCENERY that is made primarily of fabric. See DROP, BORDER, HOUSE CURTAIN, LEG, etc |
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| A vertical steel channel on the upstage edges of the PROSCENIUM ARCH in which the edges of the FIRE CURTAIN travel. |
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| The part of the theatre on which performances happen, adjacent to the AUDITORIUM. |
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| A piece of Upstage-Downstage soft masking (often black velour) usually with splits in it to allow actors, props, etc. to pass through. Tabs are usually positioned just off-stage of the LEGs. |
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| Also called 3/4 staging. Audience members are seated on three sides of the performing area. The fourth side is usually an abbreviated PROSCENIUM and stage house. |
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| A hole in the STAGE DECK. Many theaters have systems of traps with removable covers and ELEVATORs |
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| An entranceway for audience members into the AUDITORIUM |
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| A low PLATFORM on wheels used to move SCENERY and/or PROPS on and off the STAGE. |
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| Refers to the area just off-stage to the sides of the proscenium arch. Often where you find LEGS, BOOMS, and TABS. |
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