Eternity
The time that passes between a dropped cue and the next line
Prop
A hand-carried object small enough to be lost by an actor 30 seconds before it is needed
on stage
Director
The individual who suffers from the delusion that he or she is responsible for every
moment of brilliance cited by the critic in the local review
Blocking
The art of moving actors on the stage in such a manner as not to collide with the walls,
the furniture, the orchestra pit or each other. Similar to playing chess, except that the
pawns want to argue with you.
Blocking Rehearsal
A rehearsal taking place early in the production schedule where actors frantically write
down movements which will be nowhere in evidence by opening night
Stage Manager
Individual responsible for overseeing the crew, supervising the set changes, baby-sitting
the actors and putting the director in a hammerlock to keep him from killing the actor who
just decided to turn his walk-on part into a major role by doing magic tricks while he
serves the tea.
Lighting Director
Individual who, from the only vantage point offering a full view of the stage, gives the
stage manager a heart attack by announcing a play-by-play of everything that's going wrong
Makeup Kit
(1) among experienced community theater actors, a battered tackle box loaded with at least
10 shades of greasepaint in various stages of desiccation, tubes of lipstick and blush,
assorted pencils, bobby pins, braids of crepe hair, liquid latex, old programs, jewelry,
break-a-leg greeting cards from past shows, brushes and a handful of half-melted cough
drops;
(2) for first-time male actors, a helpless look and anything they can borrow.
The Forebrain
The part of an actors brain which contains lines, blocking and characterization; activated
by hot lights
The Hindbrain
The part of an actors brain that keeps up a running subtext in the background while the
forebrain is trying to act; the
hindbrain supplies a constant stream of unwanted information, such as who is sitting in
the second row tonight, a notation to seriously maim the crew member who thought it would
be funny to put real Tabasco sauce in the fake Bloody Marys, or the fact that you need to
do laundry on Sunday. |
Quality Theatre
Any show with which you were directly involved
Turkey
Every show with which you were not directly involved
Dress rehearsal
Rehearsal that becomes a whole new ball game as actors attempt to
maneuver among the 49 objects that the set designer added at 7:30 that evening
Tech week
The last week of rehearsal when everything that was supposed to be
done weeks before finally comes together at the last minute; reaches its grand climax on
dress rehearsal night when costumes rip, a dimmer pack catches fire and the director has a
nervous breakdown. Also known as hell week.
Set
An obstacle course which, throughout the rehearsal period, defies
the laws of physics by growing smaller week by week while continuing to occupy the
same amount of space
Stage Crew
Group of individuals who spend their evenings coping with 50-minute
stretches of total boredom interspersed with 30-second bursts of mindless panic.
Message Play
Any play which its director describes as "worthwhile,"
"a challenge to actors and audience alike," or "designed to make the
audience think." Critics will be impressed both by the daring material and the roomy
accommodations, since they're likely to have the house all to themselves.
Bedroom Farce
Any play which requires various states of undress on stage and whose
set sports a lot of doors. The lukewarm reviews, all of which feature the
phrase "typical community theater fare" in the opening paragraph, are followed
paradoxically by a frantic attempt to schedule more performances to accommodate the
overflow crowds.
Assistant Director
Individual willing to undertake special projects that nobody else
would take on a bet, such as working one-on-one with the brain-dead actor whom the rest of
the cast has threatened to take out a contract on.
Set Piece
Any large piece of furniture which actors will resolutely use as a
safety shield between themselves and the audience, in an apparent attempt to both anchor
themselves to the floor, thereby avoiding floating off into space, and to keep the
audience from seeing that they actually have legs |
Monologue
That shining moment when all eyes are focused on a single actor who is desperately aware
that if he forgets a line, no one can save him
Dark
Night
The night before opening when no rehearsal is scheduled so the actors and crew can go home
and get some well-deserved rest, and instead spend the night staring sleeplessly at the
ceiling because they're sure they needed one more rehearsal.
Bit Part
An opportunity for the actor with the smallest role to count everybody else's lines and
mention repeatedly that he or she has the smallest part in the show.
Green Room
Room shared by nervous actors waiting to go on stage and the precocious children whose
actor parents couldn't get a
baby-sitter that night, a situation which can result in justifiable homicide.
Dark Spot
An area of the stage which the lighting designer has inexplicably forgotten to light, and
which has a magnetic attraction for the first-time actor. A dark spot is never evident
before opening night.
Hands
Appendages at the end of the arms used for manipulating one's environment, except on a
stage, where they grow six
times their normal size and either dangle uselessly, fidget nervously, or try to hide in
your pockets
Strike
The time immediately following the last performance while all cast and crew members are
required to stay and dismantle, or watch the two people who own Makita screw drivers
dismantle, the set.
Actors (As defined by a set designer)
People who stand between the audience and the set designer's art, blocking the view.
That's also the origin of the word "blocking," by the way.Stage Right, Stage Left
Two simple directions actors pretend not to understand in order to drive directors crazy.
("No, no, your OTHER stage right!") |
The
Abbey Theatre & Arts Centre
