Theater

Theater, also spelled theatre, is a live performance before an audience. It includes every form of entertainment from the circus to plays. In more traditional terms, theater is an art form in which a script is acted out by performers. The performers are usually assisted by a director. They interpret the characters and situations created by a playwright. The performance takes place before an audience in a space designated for the performance.

A successful theatrical event is an exciting and stimulating experience. It is rewarding, whether it occurs in a Broadway playhouse, a high school auditorium, or a space only temporarily being used for theatrical purposes. Spectators as well as those involved in the production feel this excitement.

The word theater comes from a Greek word meaning a place for seeing. In this sense, the word refers to the space where performances are staged. However, theater in a broad sense includes everything that is involved in a production, such as the script, the stage, the performing company, and the audience. In addition, theater refers to a part of human culture that began during primitive times.

Theater is not the same as drama, though the words are frequently used interchangeably. Drama refers to the literary part of a performance—that is, the play. Some critics believe that a play is not really a play until it has been performed before an audience. Others argue that the script is only a blueprint that the director and other interpretative artists use as the basis for performance.

The theater is one of the most complex of the arts. It requires many kinds of artists for its creation. These specialists include the playwright, performers, director, scene designer, costumer, lighting designer, sound designer, and various technicians. For many productions, composers, musicians, and a choreographer (creator of dances) are needed. The theater is sometimes called a mixed art because it combines the script of the playwright, the environment created by the scene designer, and the speech and movement of the performers.

In the earliest theatrical performances, the dramatist performed all artistic functions, including acting. Gradually, specialists developed and the various theater arts emerged. The actor and the playwright gained recognition first, partly because they needed each other in order to bring their arts to life.

In the modern theater, a director is used to integrate all aspects of production. These include scenery, costumes, lighting, sound effects, music, and dancing. Perhaps the most important job of the director is to guide the performers in their creative process and to aid them in their interpretation of their roles.

Modern theater architecture

Most theater buildings have three basic parts: (1) the auditorium, (2) the stage, and (3) the behind-the-scenes spaces.

The auditorium

is where the audience sits. In the broadest sense, it also includes a number of other facilities. They include the box office, lobby, entrances and exits, rest rooms, exhibition areas, and refreshment stands.

A well-designed auditorium allows every person in the audience to see and hear without strain. It also permits the spectators to reach and leave their seats easily. The interior is decorated in a pleasing fashion that does not distract attention from the stage. Auditoriums may be large or small, and they vary in their basic characteristics. The seats are either all on the main floor, or on the main floor and in one or more balconies. In some older auditoriums, box seats are available on one or more levels close to the stage. The audience normally watches the action of the play from one, two, three, or all four sides. However, in some modern theaters, the audience and the performers actually share the same space. In the United States, the mixing of audience and performance spaces is often called environmental theater.

In a number of theaters, the seating arrangement for the audience and the location of the performing space change from production to production. In some cases, the audience is required actually to shift location during the performance. Spectators move from one area to another as the action of the performance progresses. In England, presentations that require the audience to shift location are called promenade productions.

The stage.

Four basic types of stage are used in today’s theater. They are (1) the proscenium stage, (2) the open stage, also called a thrust stage or a platform stage, (3) the theater-in-the-round or arena stage, and (4) the flexible stage space. Each of these types creates a different relationship between the performers and the audience. Each requires certain adjustments in play production.

The proscenium stage is the most common type of stage. It is designed to be viewed only from the front. It is sometimes called a “picture frame” stage, because the opening through which the audience sees the action forms a frame for the performers and scenery. This frame is called a proscenium arch. An orchestra pit or a forestage area may separate the seats from the area behind the proscenium arch. Normally, the plays are performed behind the arch. However, action may take place on the forestage as well.

A proscenium stage often has a curtain that may be used to conceal or reveal the stage. The curtain may be closed to permit changes in scenery, to indicate the passage of time, or to mark the act or scene divisions of a play. Today, the dimming of lights often takes the place of closing the curtain. Elaborate, three-dimensional scenery can be used effectively on a proscenium stage. Performers enter or leave the stage by way of openings in the scenery or by way of the wings at the sides of the stage.

A modern adaptation of a proscenium stage is the end stage. The end stage has no proscenium arch or conventional curtain.

Most open stages have seats arranged around three sides of a raised platform that extends into the auditorium. The shape and size of the platform may differ considerably from auditorium to auditorium. Productions presented on open stages must be carefully staged so that all elements can be seen from three sides at the same time. Large units of scenery should be used only at the back of the stage so they do not block the audience’s view.

In a theater-in-the-round, spectators sit on four sides of the stage or completely surround it. Most stages of this type are found in small theaters with limited seating capacity. The scenery used in a theater-in-the-round must be low enough to allow the performance area to be seen from every angle. Often it is placed at the end of an aisle or behind the audience. Scene changes are made in darkness or in view of the audience. The performers in a theater-in-the-round have to make their entrances and exits through the auditorium. They must perform to all sides and must learn to be expressive with the back as well as the front of the body.

In a flexible theater, the performance and audience spaces can be rearranged for each production. This adaptability allows a director the freedom of selecting the kind of audience-stage relationship most appropriate to the production. Most flexible theaters accommodate small audiences. It is not uncommon for the stage area of such theaters to be larger than the space for the audience.

A great deal of theater today, as in primitive times, takes place in found spaces—that is, in areas not originally intended for theater. Audiences may sit or stand in such performance spaces, as they do in some flexible theater spaces. One of the exciting aspects of today’s theater is the variety of its spaces for performers and audiences.

The behind-the-scenes spaces

in a fully equipped theater may include workshops to make costumes and scenery; rehearsal and dressing rooms; lighting and sound booths; and storage space for costumes, scenery, properties, and lighting instruments. They may also include office space for theater staff and a green room (lounge) for performers. Many professional theaters, including those on Broadway, do not have equipment to build scenery. Many nonprofessional groups work in limited space. Only such large organizations as the Metropolitan Opera Association have all these behind-the-scenes spaces within one structure. Many groups, such as Actors Theatre of Louisville, Kentucky, house most work spaces in a building separate from the theater structure.

The producer

The process of staging a theatrical production begins with the producer. The producer may be an individual, a group of individuals, or a theater company. The producer has overall responsibility for the entire show. The producer’s main duties include one or more of the following: (1) acquiring a script, (2) raising money to finance the show, (3) obtaining a theater, (4) assembling a creative team to stage the production, and (5) keeping financial records.

Acquiring a script.

The starting point for most theatrical productions, professional or nonprofessional, is the playwright’s script. A producer who is interested in a new script may take an option on it. This gives the producer exclusive production rights to the play for a certain period of time. If the producer decides to present the play, a contract is drawn up specifying the amount of the author’s royalty (share of the profits). The contract also states the extent of the producer’s control over the play. For example, the contract may require the playwright to be available for consultation and possible rewriting during the rehearsal period.

Raising money

to stage a play or musical is often the producer’s most difficult job. The cost of putting on a theatrical production has become increasingly high. On Broadway in New York City, a set and a small cast may cost more than $1 million. Musicals cost several million dollars. Few individuals can invest this much money. As a result, most producers seek funds from many people, groups, or corporations.

Obtaining a theater.

The producer may be a theater company that has its own theater. If not, it is up to the producer to find a suitable space for performances and rehearsals.

In the past, Broadway plays often presented performances in another city before the official opening night in New York City. The producer made arrangements for the theater as well as for transportation and hotel accommodations. The purpose of most out-of-town performances was to sample audience reaction as a guide to improving the play and the production. Out-of-town performances are rare today because of the enormous expense involved. Instead, most productions present a series of preview performances in the theater where the regular performances will be held. Preview tickets are normally sold at reduced prices.

Assembling a creative team

may begin even before the money is raised. The producer will try to get commitments from a certain director or performer in order to attract investors. After raising the money to finance the production, the producer is involved in selecting and negotiating contracts with all the people involved in the production.

In the Broadway theater, a producer must deal with a number of major unions representing various employees. These employees include not only the director, actors, actresses, and designers, but also stagehands, musicians, dancers, and box-office personnel. Theater companies normally use their own directors, designers, and performers. They may also supplement their creative team with outside individuals.

Keeping financial records.

The producer oversees all expenditures and income for a production. The producer is responsible for seeing that the bills are paid, from salaries and costs of sets and costumes to advertising expenses. The producer also keeps track of the income from ticket sales. Periodically, the producer’s financial records must be submitted to the investors for inspection.

The director

In the modern theater, the director is responsible for the artistic effectiveness of the production as a whole. The director usually decides how the script is interpreted and coordinates the efforts of all the other artists. The director has so much control that theater in the Western world is often called a director’s theater. However, the best directors are tolerant of the ideas of the other artists throughout the production process.

In traditional theater production, the director ordinarily has five major duties. These are (1) analyzing the text of the play and determining the interpretation that will shape the production; (2) working with the playwright, technicians, and designers of scenery, lighting, and costumes in planning the production; (3) casting the performers; (4) supervising rehearsals; and (5) coordinating each element of the final production.

Interpreting the script.

The director must be thoroughly familiar with the play in order to cast and rehearse the performers intelligently and guide the various designers. He or she studies the play’s structure and examines the devices the playwright uses to tell the story and to build suspense. If traditional structure is not used, as is often the case in modern theater, the director seeks to discover how the playwright creates a mood and draws responses from the audience. The director often divides the play into sections. He or she then analyzes the characters’ behavior and the mood in each section. The director must determine how each section relates to those before and after it.

The director must understand each character’s function in the play and what is demanded of the performer who will play the role. During the rehearsal process, the director will want to allow input from the actors and actresses performing the roles. But it is helpful for the director to have an initial sense of each character’s personality, physical characteristics, emotional range, and vocal qualities.

The director must have an ability to visualize the scenic, costume, and lighting requirements of a production. He or she will accept ideas from the other partners in the production process. However, it is usually the director’s responsibility to determine the style and placement of scenery and the appropriateness of the final designs.

The amount of preparation the director must make depends on the play and the production situation. Work on a new play presents problems very different from the demands of reviving a classic. In directing a new play, for example, the director often works directly with the playwright, suggesting changes and cuts. Ideally, this process continues throughout the rehearsal period.

For an older play, the director might wish to make changes in the text so that a modern audience can better understand the language and action. This could involve cutting or changing obscure words or eliminating speeches or entire scenes. Today, such revisions are often made with the help of a dramaturge. A dramaturge is usually a historian or literary scholar who advises the director on matters of style or historical detail. Many directors believe that they must try to make a play more meaningful to modern audiences by changing its time and place, or by drastically reinterpreting the play. There is much controversy about how powerful a director should be in shaping the interpretation of a play.

Working with the designers.

Before beginning rehearsals, the director discusses the interpretation of the play with the scenic, costume, sound, and lighting designers. These experts make suggestions about design, and the director may make specific requests. For example, doors and other openings may be needed at particular places on the stage. The director makes sure that the proposed settings and costumes reflect the action, mood, theme, characters, and period of the play. The settings and costumes also must be functional in terms of the performers’ movements.

Casting.

One of the director’s first tasks is to select the performers for all the roles in the play. At this point, a casting director is often hired to select finalists for roles. An open tryout may be held to which anyone may come. In New York City, open tryouts must be held for all professional productions. Invitational tryouts also may be held. Invitational tryouts are those to which only certain performers are invited.

Actors and actresses trying out for a role may be given the play to read before the tryout. Some directors ask performers to memorize and act scenes from various plays or to present audition scenes prepared by the performer. Other directors require that a performer use pantomime. Sometimes, directors ask the performer to do an improvisation—that is, make up a scene on the spur of the moment based on suggestions given by the director.

Many factors determine the final casting. Some roles have specific physical or vocal demands. The emotional range of a role also must be considered. The director tries to cast a role with the other roles in mind in order to create a balanced and varied cast.

Rehearsing.

The rehearsal process varies greatly from director to director and play to play. For most traditional directors, there are three major concerns: (1) stage picture; (2) movements, gestures, and facial expressions; and (3) voice and speech. Other directors believe the main concern is to draw the most effective performances possible from the cast by working closely with the performers as a creative partner and by guiding them toward a unified presentation.

Traditional directors believe that each moment of a play should be a stage picture in which an image communicates without dialogue with the audience. Each stage picture should have a center of interest and should express the dominant emotional tone and the relationships among the characters. According to this approach, the director’s chief task is to focus the audience’s attention on the important elements—usually one or two characters who are most important at the moment. This is done by manipulating the positions of the performers in relation to the audience and to each other. Today, most directors believe it is a mistake to place too much emphasis on stage pictures—the most mechanical part of directing—while giving too little attention to other aspects of staging.

For example, movement is often more vital than stage pictures alone. Movement is essential to blend one stage picture into another and to create a sense of flow and development. Movement must always be appropriate for the character, situation, mood, and type of play. Gestures and facial expressions supplement the effects of movement. Most problems of voice and speech are worked out by the performers. But the director serves as a sounding board and makes sure the performers speak clearly and with appropriate expressiveness.

Most early rehearsals take place in a rehearsal room rather than on a stage. Chalk lines or tape indicate the stage floor plan. Only basic furniture and props are used.

A rehearsal schedule for a traditional play normally includes several phases. First, the director and performers read and study the play. Then the director blocks action. That is, he or she arranges the broad pattern of the performers’ movements. However, some of these movements may be changed during later stages of rehearsal. Then detailed work begins on characterization, line readings, stage action, changes in mood, and blending the performers into a unit. Next, in technical rehearsals, problems of lighting, scenery changes, costuming, and other mechanical concerns are resolved. Some directors prefer to rehearse lighting and scenery changes without performers. Finally, in dress rehearsals, the director combines all the elements of theatrical production and presents the final product as it will be seen by an audience.

The director’s assistants

include a stage manager. Depending on the budget, there may be one or more assistant stage managers, an assistant director, and a rehearsal secretary. Often, one person serves as both assistant director and rehearsal secretary.

The rehearsal secretary sits near the director during rehearsals and takes notes. An assistant director may rehearse certain scenes, coach performers, or act as a go-between for the director and designers. In the professional theater, the stage manager organizes tryouts. He or she attends all rehearsals, and records changes in dialogue and blocking on a master copy of the script. Later, during performances, the stage manager is in charge backstage. The stage manager is often called upon to direct or rehearse replacement cast members or even a complete cast for a second production of a successful show.

The performers

Performers are among the few artists who cannot separate their means of expression from themselves. They are their own instrument. They create with their own body and voice and their own psychological and mental qualities. It is often difficult to separate talent and creativity from the performer’s personality. But acting is an art and, as with any art, natural ability, study, and practice are essential.

Body and voice.

Performers need a flexible, disciplined, and expressive body. They must be able to use their body to represent a wide range of attitudes and reactions. They may be aided by courses in stage movement, dancing, or fencing. They may also participate in sports that demand physical control and coordination. Dancing and fencing are particularly useful because they provide grace and body control. These skills also assure more job opportunities for performers. A performer who can dance as well as act is especially in demand.

The same requirements of flexibility, control, and expressiveness apply to the voice as to the body. Performers learn how to breathe properly, to achieve variety in vocal rhythm and tone, and to make themselves heard and understood. They also learn dialects. Training in oral reading, relaxation, and singing is important. However, most performers require years of practice to change their voices significantly so they can speak higher, lower, louder, or softer—and still be understood. For professional performers, therefore, work on vocal improvement, as well as on physical flexibility, should continue throughout their career.

Observation and imagination.

To portray a role well, performers should know about human emotions, attitudes, and motivations (reasons for behavior). They must be able to express these elements so they can be understood by an audience. A good performer develops the habit of observing others and remembering how they behave. If an actor takes the role of an old man, for example, he may prepare in part by observing how old men walk, stand, and sit. He may then adapt these movements to suit the character. A performer also learns how different people react to such emotions as happiness, grief, and fear.

Performers may try to develop emotional memory, so that in portraying a role they can recall a situation from their past that caused a similar emotional response in them. This is a complex acting technique, however. It should be used only after developing a thorough understanding of how one should best approach this process. Performers learn to know others through knowing themselves and their emotional capacities as thoroughly as possible. They portray others partly by using their knowledge of themselves and by developing a sensitivity to their own emotions.

Concentration

is particularly important for performers. They must be able to involve themselves in an imagined situation and shut out all distractions. Their goal is to give a performance that creates the illusion of something happening for the first time. Part of making this happen involves concentrating on listening to other performers in the play and responding appropriately. It also involves focusing on each moment as it happens rather than anticipating what is to come.

Systems of acting.

No matter how talented or even well-trained performers are, they cannot use their skills to full effectiveness without some consistent working method. Performers should try as many approaches to acting as possible. They should choose the one, or a combination of several, they consider to be most successful for them.

The differences among systems of acting are often described in terms of two extremes: mechanical-external and psychological-internal. The two differ on the question of whether a performer must be emotionally moved to act convincingly. Extreme supporters of the external system argue that emotion may interfere with good acting. They believe the performer should merely try to create the external signs of emotions. Strong advocates of the internal system claim that only through feeling can performers project themselves into a character and situation. This approach is sometimes called the Stanislavski system, for the Russian director Konstantin Stanislavski. The version used in the United States is known as the Method. For most performers, however, neither extreme provides the best approach to the art of acting or leads to the truthfulness on stage that is most believable to an audience.

Creating a role.

Performers must solve several specific problems every time they play a new role, especially in conventional plays. These problems normally include (1) analyzing the role, (2) movement and gesture, (3) vocal characterization, (4) conservation and build, and (5) ensemble playing.

Analyzing the role

starts with a study of the play as a whole. Then performers concentrate on their own parts. First they analyze the various aspects of characterization. That includes a character’s appearance, occupation, social and economic status, and general personality. They then examine the character’s goal and behavior, both in the play as a whole and in individual scenes. Finally, they study how their role is related to the other characters and to the structure of the play. If the play takes place during an earlier time, performers may study the period and setting. They not only analyze their role independently, but also develop their interpretation in partnership with the director and the rest of the cast.

Movement and gesture

are the ways in which the performer portrays the character’s walk, posture, gestures, and bodily attitudes. The director plans the broad pattern of movement or works this out in rehearsal with the actors. The performer fills in the details. The performer works to understand the purpose or emotional reason behind each movement so he or she can perform every action “in character.”

Vocal characterization

refers to the character’s general vocal qualities. Performers decide what qualities are desirable, and adjust their voices accordingly. One character may require a high-pitched voice. Another may have a soft, soothing voice. The performer also notes the demands of each scene. Some scenes may be more relaxed than others, and some may be emotionally high-keyed. A change within a scene can often be enhanced by appropriate vocal patterns. For example, growing tension can be denoted by raised pitch, greater volume, and faster tempo.

Conservation and build

include the ways performers conserve their powers and heighten the role to a climax. In many modern plays there is no conventional build or climax. However, the performer must still be able to sustain a role and alter its dynamics (forces) as needed from beginning to end. Most characters change or show growth during the course of a play. The performer must reflect these developments. The need to sustain and build a part is most important in highly emotional roles. If performers begin at too high an emotional pitch, they soon may not be able to build the intensity any further. The rest of the performance may seem monotonous. Performers must pace themselves so the performance grows in strength and interest as dictated by the demands of the text and the decisions made with the director.

Ensemble playing

is the sense of artistic unity and cohesion that results from the cooperative efforts of the entire cast. No acting performance is fully effective unless it is integrated with all the other performances—unless the text deliberately calls for a lack of completeness. Ensemble playing results when every performer adjusts to the needs of the play, and remains aware of the methods, strengths, and weaknesses of the other performers.

Scene design

Scene design has two basic purposes—to aid the audience’s understanding, and to express the distinctive qualities of a play. To aid understanding, for example, the stage setting may define the time and place of the action. The set creates an appropriate mood and expresses the play’s dominant elements through composition and color.

The scene designer

begins a job by studying the play as a whole. He or she then analyzes its scenic demands. Consideration must be given to the number, size, and kinds of settings needed. The designer must also consider their physical arrangement; and the play’s period, place, and social and economic background. The designer also may do research to learn about typical manners and customs, decorative details, architectural forms, furnishings, and building materials of the period. The designer meets with the director to discuss the kind of stage most appropriate for the production—if choices are available—and the budget for scenery. Also discussed are the requirements of the sets, the locations of entrances and exits, and the arrangement of furnishings.

Next, the designer makes preliminary sketches of the set and discusses them with the director. Before the designs receive final approval, the designer draws them in perspective and in color. These drawings are called set renderings. The designer makes floor plans of each set and may build three-dimensional scale models to show how each set will look and how scene changes can be made. The designer also makes a series of working drawings that show how each set will be built. In the professional theater, where scenery may be built by a scenic studio, every detail of construction, assembly, and painting must be indicated. In the nonprofessional theater, where the designer often supervises construction, fewer drawings are needed.

Kinds of scenery.

The designer uses several basic scenic units when building sets. Most of these units may be classified as standing or hanging.

The basic standing unit is the flat. A flat is a rectangular wooden frame over which canvas or muslin is stretched or some other light material is attached, providing a lightweight structure. Flats can be made in any size needed. However, extremely large flats are awkward to handle and move. Most flats are from 12 to 16 feet (360 to 490 centimeters) high and 1 to 6 feet (30 to 180 centimeters) wide. A plain flat has no openings. A door flat, window flat, fireplace flat, and arch flat all have appropriate openings. Other standing units include door and window frames, fireplaces, platforms, steps and staircases. They also include rocks and built-up ground, tree trunks, and columns. A ground row is a low flat with a shaped edge that may give the appearance of distant hills, rows of buildings, or even an abstract shape.

Hanging units include ceilings, borders, drops, drapes, curtains, scrims, and cycloramas. Most ceilings are made from two large rectangular flats hinged together. They are suspended above the set, and lowered to rest on the tops of flats representing walls. In modern design, the ceiling often is not used at all. In most exterior settings, borders are substituted for ceilings. Borders are short curtains of black cloth or painted canvas hung parallel to the front of the stage. They are intended to hide the area above the setting from the audience. Borders, like flats, can be shaped and painted to resemble any object or form.

Large pieces of canvas called drops usually extend the width of the stage. They can be painted to represent any scene. Most drapes or curtains are hung in a series parallel to the proscenium on each side of the stage to conceal offstage space. A scrim is a gauze curtain that is used for special effects. It appears transparent when lighted from the back, but opaque when lighted from the front. A cyclorama is a continuous stretched curtain suspended on a U-shaped batten (pipe). The cyclorama usually extends along the sides and back of the stage. Most cycloramas are neutral in color, but they can be made any color by lighting. They are often used to represent the sky.

Changing scenery.

After scenery has been built, it is assembled on stage. A one-set show can be assembled permanently. A multiple-set production, however, requires careful planning so that each unit can be set up and taken down quickly and quietly during the show.

When scenery is changed by hand, each part is moved by one or more stagehands to a prearranged place offstage. New settings are then assembled or moved on stage. Another common method of changing scenery is called flying. Suspended units overhead are raised and lowered as needed on the stage.

Rolling platforms called wagons are often used to change scenery. Scenery is placed on the wagons, which can be rolled on or off the stage. One kind of wagon is called a jackknife. This kind of wagon is attached to the stage floor at a fixed point and moves much as a pocket jackknife opens and closes. A jackknife wagon can be of any size. It is sometimes as wide as the proscenium opening itself. The most common wagon is a straight-run wagon that rolls on stage in a straight line and is pulled back out of sight of the audience for storage.

Scenery can also be changed by means of revolving stages or elevator stages. A revolving stage has a large circle of the stage floor mounted on a central supporting pivot that can be rotated. Several settings can be erected at one time and moved into view as needed by turning the stage. An elevator stage has sections of the stage floor that can be lowered to the basement of the theater. There, scenery can be changed while another set is being used.

Properties and set dressing

are added to the set after the scenery has been assembled. Properties are often divided into two categories. Set props, such as sofas, tables, and bookshelves, function as part of the design or are a necessary part of the setting. Hand props, such as fans and guns, are props used by the performers. Set dressing includes such items as pictures, drapes, books in a bookshelf, and decorative objects on a mantel.

Lighting and sound

Lighting methods.

The lighting designer analyzes a play for its dramatic values and then for its lighting needs. The designer notes everything in the script concerning light. There might be such changes in intensity as a sunrise or lamps being lit. Variations in light might be needed for various parts of the setting. The script may note the direction from which light enters the set, such as moonlight through a window.

The designer pays particular attention to the mood of the play because lighting is effective in establishing stage atmosphere. The designer must understand the style of the play. For realistic drama, for example, the designer will probably make the light appear to come from a specific source, such as a lamp or sunshine through a window.

The lighting designer confers with the scene designer and the director. In the professional theater, the lighting designer makes sketches showing how the stage will look when lighted. In most nonprofessional productions, the lighting designer and the director reach general agreement about lighting. The focus and placement of the lights cannot be finally determined until the scenery is in place.

Lighting for the stage is divided into (1) specific illumination, (2) general illumination, and (3) special effects. Specific illumination concentrates on a limited area. It is used principally for lighting the acting areas, which require strong emphasis. General illumination is used to light the sets and background elements and to blend the lighting of acting areas. In addition, it is used to provide a gradual change between brilliantly lighted acting areas and less intense lighting on the background. Special effects refers to a variety of lighting techniques and instruments. Typical examples of special effects include projections of clouds, fires, or stars. The creation of patterns on the stage floor can suggest light through tree branches.

In planning the lighting, the designer draws a lighting plot on a floor plan showing the entire stage, including the setting. A separate lighting plot is sometimes drawn for each set, as well as a plot showing the lighting for all the sets at the same time.

An instrument schedule provides a summary of all the technical information needed to set up the lights for a play. This schedule lists lighting instruments, mounting positions, areas to be lighted, color filters, and other technical data.

There are several types of lighting instruments. A spotlight illuminates a limited portion of the stage with a concentrated beam of light. Spotlights commonly range in power from 500 to 5,000 watts. They have reflectors to increase their brightness, and lenses to give light a specific type of edge, either sharp or soft. Frames enable the lighting designer to insert a transparent colored sheet in front of the lens. This sheet, called a gelatin or gel, changes the color of the light.

A striplight consists of a series of lamps set in a narrow, roughly rectangular trough. Striplights vary in length, wattage, and use. One type, called borderlights, is hung overhead to spread light to the set or background. Other striplights may be placed on the floor or elsewhere on the stage, often behind a ground row, to light a cyclorama or scenic units.

Many instruments are used to create special effects. Projectors for front or rear projection are among the most useful. An entire scenic background can be projected on a screen or on a cyclorama. Some projectors have rotating disks to create the effect of movement, as in clouds.

Lighting on the stage is changed by the use of a number of dimmers on a control board. Dimmers allow the designer to vary the intensity of each light, ranging from full brightness to black. The level of intensity for the lights in each light change, or light cue, can be preset during the technical rehearsal. Today, it is common for large numbers of dimmers to be electronically controlled. A complex lighting cue can be accomplished by pushing one key on a computer. The direction or focus of specific lighting instruments can also be altered by remote control.

Sound production.

Sound makes its greatest contribution when it is designed as a unit and carefully integrated into the production as a whole. Sound includes music, abstract noises, and such realistic effects as thunder.

Sound performs two basic functions: (1) to establish mood and style and (2) to help tell the story. Music and abstract sound help indicate the proper atmosphere for each scene. Such realistic sounds as rainfall or a distant foghorn also contribute to mood. Sound helps tell the story through gunshots, ringing doorbells, and other realistic noises. These noises either prepare the audience for onstage action or indicate action supposedly occurring offstage.

Sound is classified as live or recorded. Live sound is created fresh for each performance and includes doorbells and telephones. Recorded sound includes noises made by an approaching car and the sounds of a crowd offstage.

Most musicals and some nonmusical plays use microphones to increase or reinforce sound intensity. Technicians wire the microphones across the front of the stage, or the performers wear small hidden microphones that have wireless transmitters to the amplifiers.

Costumes and makeup

Costume design

shares the same broad purposes as scene design. It aids the audience’s understanding and expresses the play’s distinctive qualities. Costumes help identify the period and country in which the action takes place and establish the specific location of a scene. They can suggest time of day, season, and occasion. They can provide information about the characters—ages, occupations, personalities, and social and economic status.

Costumes can also clarify the relationships among characters. For example, the warring sides in many Shakespearean history plays are identified by contrasting color schemes. Costumes also express the overall mood of the play, its style, and the emotional tone of individual scenes.

Like other members of the creative team responsible for a production, the costume designer studies the script thoroughly. The costumer confers with the director, scenic designer, lighting designer, and principal performers to make sure his or her ideas fit the interpretation of the play. The costumer uses line, mass, color, texture, and ornaments to create a visual statement. Like the scene designer, the costumer records ideas in color sketches. The sketches, called renderings, are usually accompanied by samples of material. They are given to the director for approval. The costumer also makes a chart indicating what each character wears in each scene of the play.

Costumes may be made new, assembled from an existing wardrobe, borrowed, or rented. In the professional theater, professional costume houses make costumes to order. Nonprofessional theaters often borrow costumes or rent them from a costume rental agency. Many permanent theater organizations, both professional and nonprofessional, make their own costumes. Most maintain a wardrobe of items from past productions.

The director and designers evaluate the costumes at a dress parade. The parade shows the performers under lights similar to those used in performances. If there is no dress parade, the evaluation is done during a dress rehearsal. Any necessary changes to costumes are made during the final rehearsal period. After performances begin, a wardrobe attendant works backstage and supervises costume changes, repairs, and adjustments.

Makeup techniques.

Makeup is important in establishing characterization. The appearance of the face indicates the character’s age, health, and ethnicity. The face can also suggest a general occupation and basic personality. Makeup serves the additional purpose of restoring or emphasizing the face’s color and form, which may be affected by the lighting or distance from the audience.

For a straight makeup, the performer’s appearance is not changed significantly. In a character makeup, it is changed greatly. The makeup may age the face; make it fat, thin, smooth, or wrinkled; or emphasize some peculiar facial characteristic. For a character makeup, the performer often must alter the hands, the neck, and other portions of the body as well as the face.

Makeup effects can be achieved in two basic ways: (1) by painting or (2) by using plastic or three-dimensional pieces. Painting involves applying color, shadows, and highlights to the face or body. All makeup has some painted effects. Plastic makeup devices include beards, wigs, false noses, scars, or distorted portions of the face.

Traditionally, makeup has been considered the performer’s responsibility, though it also concerns the costumer. In the professional theater, performers are responsible for their own makeup. However, they consult specialists for help with problems. In many nonprofessional theaters, makeup is considered part of the costumer’s duties. Sometimes the director is responsible for makeup.

Theater in the United States

Professional theater.

The best-known center of professional theater in the United States is New York City, though Chicago, Seattle, and Los Angeles have become major centers as well. In addition, resident professional companies exist in many cities.

New York City.

The theaters on and near Broadway have long been the most important force in theater in the United States. But the increasing expense of staging a Broadway production has narrowed the range of plays offered. Producers limit themselves almost entirely to shows that indicate promise of success or that have been successful elsewhere. As a result, Broadway drama has less richness and variety than it might have.

The theater reviews, particularly those of the New York newspapers, greatly influence the commercial success of a play. If all or most of the reviews criticize a play severely, the producer normally will close the show. If the play is the work of a well-known playwright, or has a major star, the advance sale of tickets may save it despite poor reviews. However, a play must be a big box-office hit to survive long on Broadway. Many productions close after only a few performances with great losses. On the other hand, some run for years, especially large, spectacular musicals. The “hit” or “flop” pattern has created a situation in which a play must be a great success financially, or it is considered a failure.

In the 1950’s, off-Broadway theater developed in New York City from dissatisfaction with conditions on Broadway. Its purpose was to offer an alternative, more experimental theater and to present plays of greater artistic quality than those produced on Broadway. Most off-Broadway theaters were originally located in low-rent areas. Most had poorly equipped stages, limited seating, and few conveniences for the audience. The originality of the script, the creativeness of the performers, and the low cost of production made up for such disadvantages. By the 1960’s, however, costs began to increase, and off-Broadway theater was too often being used to test commercial possibilities.

With the decline of off-Broadway, unknown artists began to present productions in storefront theaters and lofts. In these spaces, inventive plays and staging are still possible. This movement became known as off-off-Broadway. Since the mid-1960’s, these theaters have become a major force in experimental drama. However, off-off-Broadway also is beginning to reflect commercial theater values and standards.

Theater outside New York City.

Starting in the 1950’s, resident acting companies were established in cities throughout the United States. In the 1960’s, with the financial aid of the Ford Foundation and other organizations, these companies increased in number and reputation. During the late 1900’s and early 2000’s, however, many theaters closed because of economic pressures.

Most resident theaters perform in their own facilities. Many of them try to vary their programs with plays of different periods and styles. Some are dedicated to producing new plays. Usually, directors and performers are hired for a single production. Occasionally, they are employed for the entire season. Most resident theaters have a permanent administration, often including an artistic director and a managing director.

Most resident theaters operate subscription seasons. The theater offers prospective patrons a discount on ticket prices if they purchase seats for every play before the season begins. The subscription plan assures audiences of seats for every show at reduced prices. Subscription sales allow theaters to get a considerable amount of money before the season begins. This protects the institutions from severe financial loss if one or more of the season’s shows is a failure. But even with a healthy subscription sale, the financial stability of many theaters remains a major concern. They still must rely heavily on financial support from government and private sources, as well as individual patrons of the arts.

Nonprofessional theater groups

exist throughout the United States. They include college and high school groups and community theaters.

College and high school theater.

Many colleges and universities have theater and drama departments. They produce plays as part of the education of their students and as a service to the community. The best college theaters are organized administratively like resident professional companies. Because their purpose is educational, such theaters usually present standard works from earlier periods as well as more recent plays. Many theaters also produce original plays. Occasionally, a professional performer may appear in a production, but all-student casts are customary.

Almost all U.S. high schools have some kind of theater production program. The production of plays may be assigned to people untrained in the theater, with poor results. But a number of high schools have developed theater programs of excellent quality, supervised by qualified staffs. Many of these schools have superb facilities and offer courses in play production, dramatic literature, and related areas.

Community theater

developed between 1900 and 1920. The community theater not only provides entertainment for local audiences, but also furnishes an outlet for the creative talents of its members. Many community theaters employ a full-time director who supervises all productions. Many of these theaters are run exclusively by volunteers. Others pay the director of each production and also provide fees for the designer and chief technician. Most plays staged by community theaters are comedies and musicals.

Theater in other countries

Nearly all major cities have theater districts similar to Broadway in organization and appeal. Many productions are commercial enterprises supported by private investment. However, the theaters with the highest reputations are permanent organizations.

Canada, most European countries, and some Asian and African nations have several government-supported theaters. These theaters employ staffs of directors, performers, designers, and other creative people. Many state-supported theaters also hire performers, directors, and designers for single productions.

A number of theaters operate in government-owned buildings and pay no rent. The government gives them an annual sum of money called a subsidy. A subsidy usually does not cover all production costs, but it supplements the income from ticket sales. The subsidy enables a theater to charge lower admission prices. It also provides protection against financial loss. Most subsidized companies produce a season of plays annually. Each play is performed for a limited time or in rotation with other plays. Some plays are presented at regular intervals through the years.

Canada

has two strong theater traditions—French and English. The French-Canadian tradition began in 1606. The English theater in Canada developed in the mid-1700’s.

Among the prominent French-Canadian institutions are Le Theatre du Nouveau Monde in Montreal and several companies in Manitoba, Toronto, and Quebec City. English-speaking Canada has several internationally known theater organizations. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival (now the Stratford Festival) in Stratford, Ontario, began in 1953. It revolutionized theater in Canada and created a standard for professional theater in that country. The Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, was founded in 1962. This theater festival emphasizes the production of plays by George Bernard Shaw and his contemporaries. There are also alternative theater festivals in many cities across the country devoted to experimentation or special interest groups.

The United Kingdom.

The British government started to give subsidies to the theater in the 1940’s. In the late 1900’s, subsidies were reduced. Many smaller theaters, especially outside London, lost most of their support. In the 1990’s, however, money from a national lottery was used to renovate numerous theaters. The Royal National Theatre, which is still highly subsidized, is one of the world’s outstanding companies. It was created in 1962 as an outgrowth of the Old Vic company. The Old Vic was formed in 1914 and gave its last performances in 1963. In 1976, the National Theatre moved into a new theater center in London built especially for it.

Another subsidized theater, the Royal Shakespeare Company, was created from the organization that produced the Stratford-upon-Avon Shakespeare Festival. It divides its company between London’s Barbican Arts Centre and the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford. Of the smaller subsidized theaters in London, the English Stage Company at the Royal Court Theatre is the best known. Since 1956, it has introduced the works of many new dramatists. Several resident theaters in cities outside London receive subsidies from the local governments. One of the most prominent of these is the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester.

France.

The world’s oldest operating state theater is the Comedie-Francaise in Paris. It was established in 1680. The Theatre Nationale Populaire, the Odeon, and several other notable French theaters also receive government support. The state supports dramatic centers in such cities as Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Rennes, St.-Etienne, Strasbourg, Toulouse, and Tourcoing. The theatrical companies of many of these cities tour nearby communities. France’s government also subsidizes touring companies and summer drama festivals. However, some of the most exciting work in French theater since the early 1980’s has occurred at nonsubsidized theaters, such as Theatre du Soleil.

Germany

has an extensive system of state-supported theaters. It has several hundred theaters that are state-owned or city-owned. Many of its state-supported theaters date back to the late 1700’s.

Almost every large German city has drama, opera, and ballet companies. All subsidized companies in a city generally operate under one manager appointed by the city or state. All the companies share a staff of directors and designers. Outstanding organizations include the Theater am Kurfurstendamm in Berlin.

Italy.

The Italian theater operates differently than that of most European countries in that the most important Italian drama companies tour the larger cities of Italy. In addition, a small number of resident theaters are subsidized by city or provincial governments. The leading resident theaters are in Genoa, Milan, Rome, and Turin.

Scandinavia.

There are major subsidized theaters in each of the Scandinavian countries. In Sweden, the most notable are the Royal Dramatic Theater in Stockholm and the city theater of Malmo. However, nonsubsidized groups called free groups have grown in number since 1970. Major subsidized theaters in Norway include the Norske Teatret. In the 1970’s, five regional subsidized theaters opened. Most major theaters in Denmark are subsidized, including the Kongelige Teater and Folketeater in Copenhagen and provincial theaters in Århus, Ålborg, and Odense. However, an influential theater in Denmark is Odin Teatret, an international theatrical community founded in 1964 by Eugenio Barba, an expatriate Italian. Since 1966, Odin Teatret has been based in Holstebro.

Russia

was part of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1991. Before World War II (1939-1945), theater was generously subsidized by the Soviet government. Theater suffered a blow in 1946 when many subsidies were withdrawn and tight censorship was imposed. After Premier Joseph Stalin died in 1953, the government relaxed its censorship and the variety of plays increased greatly.

Moscow and St. Petersburg are the two major theater centers in Russia. The Moscow Art Theater, founded in 1898, is perhaps the most respected theater in Russia. The Maly Theatre, founded in 1824, is the city’s oldest theater. The Theater of the Revolution was founded in 1922. It was renamed the Mayakovsky Theater in 1954 in honor of Vladimir Mayakovsky, a Russian writer of the early 1900’s. Newer theaters in Moscow include the Taganka, founded in 1946, and the Sovremennik, founded in 1958. In St. Petersburg, the Alexandrinsky Theater was opened in 1824. It was renamed the Pushkin Theater in honor of Alexander Pushkin, Russia’s greatest poet. The other major St. Petersburg theater is the Gorky, founded in 1919 and named for Maxim Gorky, a modern Russian dramatist.

Training for the theater

There is much dispute over the proper way to train theater artists. Some argue that a general liberal arts education is preferable, with no theater training or with only basic theater courses included. Concentrated work in the theater arts would then follow at a more advanced level. Those who favor this method believe that liberal arts training is especially valuable for the study of theater and drama, which deal with all aspects of human experience. Others believe a general education is unnecessary, and that professional training should be taken from the start. Still others think liberal arts courses and professional training should be combined.

In certain areas, such as acting training, some argue that classes should begin at a very young age. Others believe that classes should begin after the student is of high school age.

Colleges and universities.

A large number of colleges and universities provide some training in the theater arts. The majority of these institutions offer courses in dramatic literature and theory and theater history. However, many educators believe that performance training, other than that at the most basic level, should take place in specialized graduate schools or professional training programs.

Other colleges and universities give academic credit for a wide range of theater courses. These courses include playwriting; acting; directing; pantomime; scene, costume, and lighting design; technical production; dance; stage movement; and even mask-making and theater management. The student may be expected to follow a course of study that provides a broad liberal arts education. Depending on the program, however, one-fourth to one-third or more of the course work may be devoted to the theater arts. Graduate programs may offer one to three additional years of intensive training or advanced education in history, theory, and criticism.

Professional training programs

are offered by a number of universities. Such programs are also provided by conservatories and studios not connected with universities and by professional theater companies. Professional training programs normally allow students to spend most of their time on theater courses. Some schools give certificates for the completion of a prescribed program. Some programs offer advanced academic degrees. Other programs offer neither a certificate nor a degree. A student may simply enroll in any class for as long as he or she wishes.

Most professional training schools are in or near cities with professional theaters. Some of the best-known programs are operated by the American Conservatory Theater, the University of California at San Diego, New York University, the Juilliard School, the American Repertory Theater, and the Yale School of Drama. For almost all the better training programs, auditions are necessary for acting students.

Professional training programs give performers intensive training but do not give any guarantee of employment. Most beginning performers seek work in resident or alternative theater companies. Because many of these companies hire their performers in New York City, it is often necessary to go there to get started. Many young performers move to Hollywood to try to find employment in motion pictures or television. The supply of performers always greatly exceeds the demand. Most people find it difficult to establish a successful career in the theater.