GLOSSARY OF THEATRE TERMS Compliments of The Laguna Playhouse Act:Apartfrombeingwhatactorsdoonstage,thetermalsodenotesadivisionintheperformance ofaplay.Eachactmayalsohaveseveralscenes.Nowadaysfulllengthplaystypicallyhave twoor threeacts.Often,thoughnotinvariably,thereisanintermissionbetweentheacts. Actor:Aperformerinaplay.Actress,thegrammaticallycorrectfemaleformoftheword,islittle usedinthetheatreworldtodayalthoughitisstillsometimesusedinfilmandtelevision.

Actors Equity Association (AEA):Theprofessionalunionforactorsandstagemanagers.The unionnegotiatescontractsregulatingpayscalesandworkingconditionswithBroadwayproducers andprofessionalregionaltheaters. Ad lib:ShortfortheLatin adlibitum meaningfreely. Inthetheatretoadlibmeanstoimprovise linesthoughtheaudiencegenerallyshouldntknowitshappeningunlessanactorisresponding spontaneouslytoacommentpickedupfromtheaudience.Ofcourse,actorsmaysimplyadlib becausetheyveforgottentheirlines.Eventhemostexperiencedactorsoccasionallyhavemental blanksliketherestofus.Thatswhentheygetaprompt. Antagonist:Antagonistsarepresentinalmosteveryplay.Theyopposewhatthemainhero,or protagonististryingtoaccomplish. Artistic Director:Thisisthepersonwho,inanonprofitprofessionaltheatre,choosestheplaysand generallythepeopledirector,designer,actorswhowillbringtheplaystolifeonstage.Theartistic directoralsocarriesoutthecreativemissionofthetheatre,overseestheartisticqualityofthe productionsandmayalsodirectparticularshows.TheartisticdirectorofTheLagunaPlayhouseis AndrewBarnicle. Auditorium: Strictlyitsanenclosedspaceinwhichanaudiencegatherstohearaperformance,so itsmorecommonlyappliedtoconcerthalls.Generally,inthetheatre,theauditoriumisreferredtoas thehousethustheexpression,muchlovedbytheatremanagerseverywherefullhouse. Balcony:Strictlyspeaking,thisisthesecondtierofseatinginatheatre,elevatedandprotruding overthebackrowsoforchestraormainlevelseating. Backdrop:Alargedraperyofpaintedcanvasthatprovidestherearorupstage masking ofaset. Backstage:Theareabehindandaroundthestagethatitisunseenbytheaudience.Someplays, suchasMichaelFraynsfarce, NoisesOff,andRonaldHarwoodspoignantdrama, TheDresser, actuallyportraylifebackstage. Batten:Atubular metalbar,sometimesknownasapipe,toorfromwhichoverheadlighting instrumentscanrespectivelybeattachedorhung. Blackout:Atheatricalblackoutasopposedtoapowerfailureisasuddendarkeningofthestage. Aslowdarkeningisdescribedas "fadetoblack."

Blocking:Thesearethestagemovementsandpositionsthatthedirectorworksoutwiththeactors inrehearsalfordramaticeffectandsotheywontbumpintoeach.Thestagemanagermakesa carefulnoteofblockingdirectionsforlaterreference. Break a leg:Afriendly,customaryencouragementofferedtoperformerspriortoashow.Itmay soundharshbuttheexpressionissaidtoderivefromtheideaofaperformer,havingleftthestage, beingcalledbackfrombehindthe legs foranencore. Booth:Anenclosed,windowedarea,usuallyatthebackofthe auditorium,usedfortechnicalcontrol purposes.Sometimesthereisaseparateboothforsoundandlightingcontrol.Thestagemanager mayalsooperatefromaboothratherthanfrombackstage. Border: Anarrow,horizontalmasking pieceabovethestage.Bordersservetohidethelightingrig andsceneryintheatresthatcanflyorraisesceneryoutofsight.Bordersalsodefinetheupper limitoftheaudiencesstageview.Seealso,teaser. Box set:Ascenicdesignthatincludesthreewallsandsometimesaceiling,usuallytogiveavery realisticvisualeffect.Ittendstoemphasizethenotionofafourthinvisiblewall,theoneatthefront throughwhichtheaudienceobservestheaction. Broadway:ThefamoustheatredistrictofmidtownManhattaninwhich32theatersarelocated. Call:Thisisanotificationtocastandcrewofarehearsalorperformance.Itsalsousedtodescribe thecountdowntoaperformanceprovidedbystagemanagement. Cast:Thecomplementofactorsinaplay. Catwalk:Narrowbridgesabovethestagefromwhichsceneryandlightingequipmentcanbe handled.Sometheatresalsohavelightingcatwalksabovetheseatingarea. Comedy:Thistermdescribesaplaythatislightintoneanddesignedtoamuse.TheancientGreeks arecreditedwithinventingcomediesasawaytocommentsatiricallyondomesticsituations. Costume:Whatanactorwearstoevoketheappearanceofaparticularcharacter.Costumesmay berealisticorstylized.Theymaybeperiodappropriatetothehistoricalsettingoftheplayor deliberatelymoderninlook,evenwhentheplayissetinapastera. Crew:Theteamoftheatreworkersoftentheunsungheroeswhotakecareofthephysical aspectsofaproductionateachperformance. Cue:Aprearrangedsignthatindicatestoaperformer,crewmemberorstagetechnicianthatitis timetoproceedtothenextlineoraction.Actorsalsolistenforcuesinthetextsothattheyknow whenit'stime tosayordosomething. Commercial theatre:Abusinessorientedapproachtotheatricalproductioninwhichtheobjectiveis tomakeaprofitforthebackers.Commercialproductionsandnonprofittheatreproductionsare neitherinherentlybetternorworsethaneachother.Sometimesaplaythathasbegunlifeinthenon profitenvironmentmaygoontohaveacommercialrunandviceversa.Commercialtheatre,

however,tendstoavoidartisticallyriskyandadventurousfare. Cove:Apositionintheauditoriumwherestagelightingcanbeplacedandhiddenfromtheaudience. Curtain call:Whathappensattheendoftheplayevenifthereisntanactualcurtaintosignalthe endwhentheactorsacknowledgetheaudiencesapplause. Dark:Wesaythetheatre,orhouse,isdarkwhenitsclosedtothepublic,asbetweenproductions oronnonperformancedays. Denouement:Aconcludingsceneinaplaywherethedramaoftheactionisresolvedhappilyor otherwise.Someplaywrightsdeliberatelyavoidatraditionaldenouement,leavingthedrama effectivelyopenended. Designer:Thisapersonwhodesignssetsand/orcostumesforaplay.Also,thepersonresponsible forilluminatingaproductionisoftencalledthelightingdesigner. Dialogue:Conversationina play. Director:Thepersonresponsibleforinterpretingandbringingthetextofaplaytolifeonstage.The directoralsomanagestheoverallartisticunityoftheproduction. Downstage:Thefrontofthestageclosesttotheaudience. Drop:Alargepieceoffabrichungdownontothestagefloor. Dry Ice:Frozencarbondioxideusedtoproducestagemist.Dryiceissocoldthatwhenalumpof thestuffisloweredintoboilingwateritproducescloudsofdense,heavysteamthatcanbepumped onstagetoproducealowlyingmist.Ifamoregeneralizedmistyeffectisrequireddryiceisreplaced orsupplementedbysmokegeneratedbyburningaspecialoilbasedsubstance Exposition:Thepartofaplaythatfillsinthingsthathavealreadyhappenedsoyoucanmakesense ofwho'swhoandwhythey'redoingwhatever.Sometimesplaywrightsuseactualnarratorstodothis byaddressingtheaudiencedirectly.Othertimestheexpositioniscleverlywovenintotheopening dialogue. Flat:Aflatpieceofpainted sceneryoftenconsistingofawoodenframecoveredwithstretched fabric,usuallycanvas. Footlights:Onceacommonfeatureintheatres,thisrowoflightsacrossthefrontedgeofthestage israrelyemployedtoday.Evenso,youmaystillhearsomeonesayofanactor:"Shereallyprojects acrossthefootlights." Front of House:Thisusuallyreferstothepublicareasofthetheatrebutstrictlyincludeseverything infrontoftheproscenium.Afrontofhousemanageroverseesstaffmemberswhoworkinthisarea. Ghost light:Alightleftonwhenatheatreisclosedforthenight.

Gobo:Anetchedplate,usuallymetal,putinfrontofaspotlightsothatapatterniscastonstage. Goboscanbeusedinallkindsofways,forexample,toimitatetheeffect oflightfilteredthrough foliageortocreatetheeffectofaneonsign.Agobocanbeplacedinarotatingholdertocreatea dynamiceffectsuchasthelightreflectedfromripplingwater. Green room:Aroominthetheaterrarelypaintedgreenwheretheactorsandcrewcanrelaxor receiveinstructions.ThetermmaycomefromancientGreektheatrewhereactorswouldstretchout onthelawnbeforesteppingonstage. Grip:Acolloquialtermforastagehand. Hamming:Thisdescribesflagrantoveractingsomethingyou'llneverseeatTheLaguna Playhouse! House:Theplacewheretheaudiencesitstoenjoytheperformanceonstage. House lights:Thelightsinthehouseorauditorium.Dimmingofthehouselightscustomarilysignals thestartofaperformance. Intermission:Adesignatedbreakinaplay.Incaseswherethereisnointermissionyouwillbe warnedinadvance. Legs:Verticalcurtainsorflatsusedtohidethewingsfromviewandframetheaudiencesviewof thestage. Lines:Whatactorslearnandspeakonstage.Thewordisalsousedtechnicallytorefertothe counterweightedropesorwiresthatmaybeusedtolowerscenery. Load In:Thisiswhathappenswhenthesetandpropsaremovedintothetheatre.Thereverseisa loadout. Managing Director:Thepersonsometimestitledgeneralmanagerorexecutivedirectorwho runsthebusinessandgeneralnonartisticoperationsofanonprofittheatre.Thisimportantfigure alsohassomeofthedutiesprovidedbyaproducerincommercialtheatresinceheorsheisin chargeraisingthemoneytomaketheartisticdirector'svisioncometofruition.AtTheLaguna PlayhousethispersonisExecutiveDirector Richard Stein. Masking:Basicallythisissceneryorothervisiblematerialdesignedtohide backstagestuffthe audienceisnotsupposedtosee,suchasthewingsorthebackwall. Monologue:Alengthyspeechbyasinglecharacterdeliveredtoother charactersinaplaynottobeconfusedwithasoliloquy. OffBroadway:ProfessionalManhattan theatresnotlocatedonBroadway's famous"GreatWhiteWay".Generally,OffBroadwayproductionsare smallerinscaleandtendtobemoreexperimental,althoughOffBroadway showsthatturnintobighitsareoften"transferred"toBroadway itself.

OffoffBroadway:Reallysmall,oftensubsidizedtheatresinunusual NewYorkCityvenuesthattendtofocusonexperimentalplays. Offstage:Technicallythisreferstoallstageareasoutsidethevisibleactingarea. Onstage:Theactingareaofthestagefloor. Orchestra:Initsordinarysensethisreferstoagroupofmusiciansbutthetermisalsousedinthe theatretorefertotheseatingareaimmediatelybehindtheorchestrapitevenwhenthereisnopit! Bytheway,ifyou'rebuyingaticketinaBritishtheatre,forgetabouttheorchestraseats.Askfora seatin"thestalls". Orchestra Pit:Thisiswhereanorchestrawillusuallybeplacedinamusicalproduction.Itgenerally extendsacrossthebreadthofthestageandiscalledapitbecauseits atalowerelevationsothat themusiciansdonotblocktheaudiencesview.Thefloorofmostmodernorchestrapitscanbe elevatedsothatwhennotbeingusedforlivemusictheareacanaccommodatemorerowsofseats. Parterre:FromOldFrench,thisliterallymeansontheground.Definitionsvarybutoftenithasbeen usedtodescribeseatingtowardstherearofthemainlevel,oftenunderthebalcony. Playwright:Thepersonwhowritestheplay.Inthecaseoflivingplaywrightstheysometimesdirect andmayinrarecasesevenactintheirownwork. Prompt:Thisiswhatactorsgetiftheyforgettheirlines.Sometheatreshavefulltimeprompters standingbyinthewings. Props:Objectsonthestagesuchasfurniturethatarenotpartoftheactual scenery.Handpropsare objectstheactorsactuallyhandlesuchasswords,booksandcups. Proscenium:Sometimesknownastheprosceniumarch,thisisanopeningthroughthewall separatingthestagefromtheauditorium.Itisoftenornatelydecoratedtoframethestage.Modern theatredesign,inordertoallowgreaterflexibilityanddeemphasizethedivisionbetweenstageand audience,tendstoavoidincludingatraditionalproscenium. Protagonist:Thecharacterwhogeneratesthemainactionofthestory. Rake: Thisistheslopeofthefloorofanauditoriumor,whereutilized,astage. Repertory:Thistermisnowusedinavarietyofways.Alltheplaysinaseasoncouldbecalledthe repertory.Strictlyspeaking,whenwespeakofa"repertorytheatre"wemeanacompanyofactors performingdifferentrolesinanumberofconcurrentlyrotatingproductions. Run:Inthetheatrethisreferstothetotalnumberofperformancesorlengthoftimeaplayisbeing presented.MostplaysatTheLagunaPlayhousehaveaonemonthrun.

Scenery:Thevariousflats,drops,etc.thatareusedtocreateaparticularvisualsettingforaplay. Scrim:Thisisagauzytranslucentcurtain.Thescrimmaybeplainorpainted.Whenlightisthrown onthefrontofascrim itbecomesopaquebutifobjectsbehinditaremorebrightlylittheywill becomevisible.Balancinglightinglevelsbehindandinfrontofthescrimisaneffectivewaytocreate interestingvisualeffectsandtransitions. Set:Thesceneryforasceneorentireproduction.Inthelattercaseitisoftenknownasaunit set whendesignedtoserveasseveraldifferentsettingswithonlyminorchangesbetweenscenesor acts. Sight lines:Thesearetheimaginarylinesdrawnfromthefarthestseatstothe stage.This determineswheretheactionisplacedonstageforoptimumviewing.Awelldesignedtheatrehas goodsightlines,meaningalmostallseatsasatTheLagunaPlayhousehaveagreatviewofthe stage. Soliloquy:Thisisaplaywrightsdevicefor lettingusknowwhatsonacharactersmind.Itsasif werelisteninginonthecharactersthoughts.Asoliloquyisdifferentfromamonologueinthatitsnot beingconsciouslydirectedattheaudience.Shakespearewroteoneoftheatresmostfamous soliloquiesforHamlet:"Tobe,ornottobe?"And,ofcourse,Hamletnevercouldquitemakeuphis mind. Smoke:Stagesmokeisproducedbythevaporizationofvariousoilbasedsubstances.Smoke machinesorfoggersdirectthisnontoxicmaterialonstagetocreatevariouseffects. Stage Left/Right:Thesedirectionsarefromtheactorsperspectivelookingouttowardsthe audience.So,ifthestagedirectioncallsforanactortoexitstageleftitwillbetheoppositeofthe waytheaudienceseesit. Stage makeup:Thisisamakeupusedtoshapeanddefineactorsfacialfeatureasseenonstage. Itcanbesimplejustalittlelipstickandeyeshadoworelaborate,involvingsuchthingsasfalse chinsandnoses. Stage Manager:Thisisaveryimportantpersonwhogivesinstructionsorcallsforjustabout everythingthathappensonstage.Becausedirectorsusuallyleavesoonafterashowhasopened, stagemanagersarealsoresponsibleforseeingthataproductioncontinuestobeperformedjustthe waythedirectorwanted.Stagemanagerslurkunseenbytheaudience,eitherjustoutofsightinone thewingsorina booth atthebackofthe house.Dependingonthearrangementofatheatreand scaleofaproductiontheremayalsobeoneortwoassistant stagemanagers. Strike:Althoughunionizedactorsandcrewhavebeenknowntostrike,inthetheatrethistermis generallyusedtodescribetheprocessofdisassemblingthesetwhenaproductioncloses. Tabs:Thistermcomesfromtableauxcurtains, drawnbackanduptorevealascene.Nowadays thetermdescribesvariouscurtainshungonstage.Intheatresthatroutinelyhavecurtainsthathide thestagewhentheperformanceisnotinprogress,thesearecalledthehousetabs.

Teaser:Thisatype ofborderusedincombinationwithtormentorstoframetheaudienceswindow ontothestage. Tormentors:Thesearenarrow,adjustablemaskingflatsoneachsideofthestageopening. Combinedwithateasertheycanbeusedtoframetheaudienceswindow ontothestage. Trap:Thisisanopeninginthestagefloor.Incaseswherethedesignandconstructionofastage permitsit,atrapcanbeusedforallkindsofeffects.Generally,however,trapsarerarelyusedin contemporarydrama. Trap Room:Thespacebelowthestageusedforaccessingtraps.Itisusefulasastoragearea. Upstage:Thisistheareatowardthebackofthestage,awayfromthefrontedge.Thetermisalso usedtodescribewhathappenswhenaperformertriestodrawanaudiencesattentionawayfrom anotherperformer. Wings:Theareastoeithersideofthestagethattheaudiencedoesnotnormallysee.