50+Terms

John W. Hallahan Catholic Girls' High School Theater Arts I; Father Steve Paolino 50 Theater Terms

Below are 50 terms used in theater. You must memorize these terms and be prepared to be tested on them.

1)Act – a lengthy segment of a show, comprising several scenes 2)Actor – a person who performs a role in a show 3)Apron – the portion of a stage that protrudes closer to the audience than the proscenium arch 4)Aside – lines spoken by a character directly to the audience that the other characters pretend they don’t hear 5)Backdrop – large, two-dimensional painted scenery hung from the fly 6)Backstage – the stage house space of a theater that the audience does not see, and any support spaces in which scenery and costumes are constructed and stored 7)Balcony – seating on a level above the main-floor orchestra seats 8)Blackout – the lights are turned completely off, leaving the stage in darkness; this is done in order to change scenery or for actors to make entrances and exits which are unseen to the audience 9)Blocking – the patterns of movement of the actors on the stage, developed in rehearsal under the director’s supervision 10)Blue Sky – a form of collecting ideas which the Disney company uses when creating a new show; it is called “blue sky” since all ideas are welcomed and nothing is rejected; often the ideas are kept and archived no matter if they are used or not 11)Book – the printed script for a show that includes lines, lyrics, and music for the actors to use 12)Call-back – an audition for which actors have been “called back” by the producer and director for a second reading; often actors are “called-back” for a specific part <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">13)Cast – a group of actors who come together for a performance <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">14)Choreographer – the person who creates the dances or movement in a production <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">15)Chorus – (1) in ancient Greek drama, the characters who spoke, sang, and danced portions of the dramas not spoken by the main characters; (2) the singers and dancers in a musical; their characters are often not named in the program or script <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">16)Composer – a musician who creates the score for a production <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">17)Control (Tech) Booth – the area, usually an enclosed booth, where the stage manager and the sound and light technicians work during a performance <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">18)Costume – an outfit worn by a performer <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">19)Crew – the backstage workers in any of a theater’s departments <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">20)Crossover – a passage actors use to get from one side of the stage to the other <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">21)Cue – any change in lighting, sound, or movement on the stage <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">22)Curtain Call – the actors take a bow while the audience applauds for a job well done <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">23)Director – the person who guides the creative process of putting the show together; gives instructions to the actors and crew <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">24)Downstage – the area of the stage floor in front, closest to the audience <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">25)Dress Rehearsal – a rehearsal near the end of the rehearsal period when the actors first wear their costumes; a dress rehearsal normally is scheduled after the technical rehearsals have been completed <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">26)Fly – the “ceiling” of the area above the stage; many larger stages feature storage space or space for scenery to be raised/lowered from the fly <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">27)Foreshadowing – information included in the dialogue that the audience needs to know so it can understand later developments of the plot <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">28)Green Room – the actors’ backstage waiting room; traditionally painted “green” in the style of a classic theater in London <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">29)Lyricist – the writer of the words in a script’s songs <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">30)Opening Night – the first public performance of a show <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">31)Orchestra – musicians who perform the music for a live show <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">32)Producer – the businessperson who heads the business aspects of a commercial production; oversees the entire work of the show to ensure a quality production <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">33)Promptbook – the stage manager’s copy of the script that has all the cues that must be given to actors and crew members <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">34)Proscenium – around the edge of the stage area; up and down and on top of the stage <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">35)Scene – a brief segment of the plot of a show <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">36)Scene Change – pieces of the scenery are brought on or carried off to change the setting for the scene <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">37)Scenery – the physical structures on stage which give a sense of the setting for the scene <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">38)Score – the composed musical elements that make up a show <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">39)Stage Crew – the people responsible for handling the technical aspects of the show and moving scenery on and off stage <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">40)Stage Left – the left side of the stage, as if you were standing on stage <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">41)Stage Manager – the person in charge of all rehearsals and performances <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">42)Stage Right – the right side of the stage, as if you were standing on stage <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">43)Storyboard – a term that describes a sequence of rough drawings that show how scenes will look in performance <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">44)Technical Rehearsal – a rehearsal at which the scenery, lighting, and sound are first added to the actors’ performances; generally held at the end of the rehearsal period, just before the first public performance <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">45)The (Orchestra) Pit – an area where the orchestra is positioned (for a musical performance); typically in front of the stage, and possibly under the stage, but not always <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">46)The “Fourth Wall” – since stages have (generally) 3 walls and the 4th is the stage front which is open to the audience, the “4th wall” is considered the separation between the actors and the audience; often times, the “4th wall” will be broken and the audience will be (sometimes literally) brought into the performance <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">47)The House – the area of the theater where the audience sits <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">48)Trap – a cutout in the stage floor down which actors can be taken to disappear from the sight of the audience <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">49)Upstage – the area of the stage in back, farthest from the audience <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">50)Wing – the sides of the stage, out of view from the audience