A-B
The science of sound as applied to theaters, relating to how sound travels and reverberates.
What is acoustics
A request that an actor return for an additional audition.
What is call-back
An actor’s ability to sense when he or she is properly placed in respect to stage lighting.
What is finding your light
When an actor knows his or her lines and no longer needs to carry the script.
What is off-book
The vocal extent of a singer’s voice, from its lowest note to its highest.
What is range
A failing of some actors who seem to be too slow or too fast in responding to action or dialogue onstage.
What is anti-timing
An audition open to anyone, regardless of experience.
What is cattle call
A theatrical production that fails to draw an audience, regardless of whether the critics liked it or not.
What is flop
The area immediately behind or to the sides of the stage area; also used more generally to talk about an actor’s everyday life.
What is offstage
Actors reading the entire play aloud while seated, generally at the first rehearsal.
What is Read-through
As a noun, the opportunity for an actor to display his or her talents when seeking a role in an upcoming production of a play; as a verb, to give a brief performance at such an occasion.
What is audition
—A line of dialogue, action, or sound, onstage or off, that tells an actor it is time to enter, exit, move across stage, or—most commonly—begin speaking.
What is cue
Gestures, facial expressions, and vocal tricks that a particular actor uses again and again in different roles.
What is mannerisms
The speed at which a scene is played.
What is pace
As a noun, the physical design of the stage area within which the actors perform; as a verb, to make permanent the way in which a scene is being played.
What is set
Stage movements by actors, including entrances, exits, and any steps taken in any direction across the stage.
What is blocking
The lower part of the lungs, filling the abdominal space, that supports the voice when actors and singers breathe correctly on stage.
What is diaphragm
—An internalized form of acting that uses experiences from an actor’s personal life to help produce onstage emotion.
What is Method acting
A deliberate pause within or between lines, used by an actor to call special attention to a moment.
What is pausing for effect
The side of the stage that is to the actor’s right as he or she faces the audience.
What is stage right
Bodily movements, large or small, which indicate what a person is thinking or feeling.
What is body language
An exaggerated facial response to another actor’s words or actions, usually used for comic effect.
What is double-take
—An actor’s ability to sound and/or look like someone else, usually a famous person.
What is mimicry
An actor’s ability to use his or her voice so that it can be clearly heard in the back rows of a theater; also used in reference to the emotions an actor wishes to convey.
What is projection
An actor, often playing a small role, who learns another role, so as to be able to perform it if the regular actor is ill.
What is understudy