2. Ad-Lib
To improvise stage business or conversation,
especially when an actor has missed or
forgotten lines and other actors must supply
the missing information
3. Amphitheater
An oval or round
structure with no
roof that has tiers
of seats rising
from the center,
used for public
performances of
plays and other
productions
7. Backdrop
A large piece
of cloth, on
which scenery
is painted, that
is fastened to
battens and
hung at the
back of the
stage setting
Also called a
drop
8. Backstage
The area behind the set that is not visible to
the audience, including dressing rooms, the
greenroom, etc.
9. Black Box Theater
A large square room with black walls and a
flat floor
seating is typically loose chairs on platforms,
which can be easily moved or removed to
allow the entire space to be adapted to the
artistic elements of a production
13. Business
Any specific action, other than a change of
location, performed on the stage, such as
picking up a book or pouring tea
Used to establish atmosphere, reveal
character, or explain a situation
14. Cheat
A stage technique in which an actor who is
facing sideways pivots the torso and turns the
face toward the audience
44. Readers’ Theatre
A form of theater in which plays are read to
an audience from a script and brought to life
by the readers’ voices, facial expressions,
and controlled movement
45. Scrim
A drop made of fabric that seems almost
opaque when lit from the front and
semitransparent when lit from behind
46. Stealing a Scene
Attracting attention from the person to whom
the center of interest legitimately belongs
47. Strike
To remove an object or objects from the
stage
To take down the set
48. Tableau
A scene presented by silent, unmoving actors
For more info, see
Pageant of the
Masters