Drama Vocabulary #3

Types

100

1. 1. the technique of showing emotions, actions, feelings, etc. by gestures without speech; 2. A play in which the performers express themselves without words, using gestures, often with music; 3. gestures without speech and, often, without objects, as when an actor pretends to be holding something 4. (British theatre) often held around Christmastime, a theatrical performance for families involving popular music, topical jokes, lively dancing and slapstick humour

Pantomime

200

a stage is divided into parts, or areas, from the point of view of an actor standing on stage staring out at the audience in front of them; the downstage area is the area of the stage closest to the audience; the upstage area is the area farthest away from the audience; the center of the stage is the area in the middle between downstage and upstage; each of these three sections is, in turn, divided into three sections (right, center, and left), so that the overall stage is broken into nine areas total. If an actor is

standing facing the audience, then:

• Upstage Right (UR): is the right corner

area toward the back of the stage.

• Upstage Center (UC): is the middle area

toward the back of the stage.

• Upstage Left (UL): is the left corner area

toward the back of the stage.

• Center Right (CR): is the center, right

area.

• Center (C): the middle, or center, of the

stage.

• Center Left (CL): is the center, left area.

• Downstage Right (DR): is the right corner

area toward the front of the stage.

• Downstage Center (DC): is the middle

area toward the front of the stage.

• Downstage Left (DL): is the left corner

area toward the front of the stage.

Stage Areas

300

1. four of the common types of stage are:

• Proscenium: generally what people think of

when they picture a theatre stage;

characterised by a proscenium arch that

forms a “picture frame” around the stage; the

audience sits in front of this type of stage.

• Thrust: a stage that juts out into the

auditorium, with the audience sitting on three

sides of the stage.

• Theatre-in-the-Round: the stage is in the

middle, surrounded by the audience;

sometimes called an arena.

• Black Box: a single room, usually painted

black, where the stage is often just the floor

of the room; this type of space is flexible, and

seating is arranged to suit the show being

performed.

Type of Stage

400

1.  1. toward the back of the stage; 2. to overshadow another performer

Upstage

500

1. usually the first time the show is rehearsed in the place where it will be performed while using all the technical elements, such as lighting, scenery and sound

Technical Rehearsal

Places/Acting

100

1. an opening through the stage floor

Trap Door

200

1.  the way in which an actor achieves his/her objective; expressed using action verbs

Tactic

300

1.  stage curtains which open across the full stage, especially a pair of horizontally moving curtains which overlap at the centre and move outwards from that centre or which open from one side

Traveler

400

1.  the height or depth to which the tone of voice is raised or lowered; actors use pitch to help them express particular emotions

Pitch

500

curtains that work in conjunction with the teaser to make the proscenium opening smaller; generally, they are the first set of legs

Tormentor

Acting

100

1. variations in the way an actor uses his/her voice; examples include making the voice more breathy, raising the pitch so that voice is high (falsetto) and speaking in a raspy way so that the voice is hoarse or rough

Quality

200

1. the speed at which an actor speaks his/her lines

Rate