Technical theatre 1

Technical Theatre Syllabus

PRODUCING TECH FOR PERFORMANCES

• TH:Cr3.1.I. c. Refine technical design choices to support the story and emotional impact of a devised or scripted drama/ theatre work.
• TH:Pr5.1.III.b. Explain and justify the selection of technical elements used to build a design that communicates the concept of a drama/theatre production.

THEATRICAL CONSTRUCTION & PROPS, LIGHTING & SOUND
COSTUMES & HAIR/MAKEUP​, MARKETING & BUSINESS

• ​TH:Cr1.1.I. b. Explore the impact of technology on design choices in a drama/theatre work.
• TH:Pr5.1.I. b. Use researched technical elements to increase the impact of design for a drama/theatre production.

CREW, HOUSE & STAGE MANAGEMENT

• TH:Cr2-I. b. Investigate the collaborative nature of the actor, director, playwright, and designers and explore their interdependent roles in a drama/theatre work.​

CRITIQUING

• TH.Re7.1.I.a - Respond to what is seen, felt, and heard in a drama/theatre work to develop criteria for artistic choices of a drama/theatre work.​

VOCABULARY

• TH:Pr5.1.I. b. Use researched technical elements to increase the impact of design for a drama/theatre production.​​

Quiz #1

• Act Curtain.     A curtain for closing the proscenium opening between acts or scenes.
• Aisle.     A passage through seating.
• Arbor.     The framework that holds the stage weights (pig irons) that counter balance the weight of anything hung on the battens in the counterweight system.
• ASM.     Assistant Stage Manager.
• Backlight.     Light coming from upstage, behind scenery or actors, to sculpt and separate them from the background.
• Barrel.     The adjustable tube at the end of an ellipsoidal that contains the lens and holds the gels.
• Batten.     The horizontal metal pipe hung from flying lines (or part of a grid) from which lighting instruments and scenery etc. may be suspended. 
• Beam Spread.     The angle of the cone of light produced by an instrument. 
• Blackout.     The act of turning off (or fading out) stage lighting. 
• Boom.     A vertical scaffolding pole used on the edges of the stage for side-lighting. 

Quiz #2

• Borders.     A narrow horizontal masking piece, normally black, to mask the lighting rig and flown scenery from the audience, and to provide an upper limit to the scene. 
• Box Set.     Naturalistic setting of a complete room built from flats with only the side nearest the audience (the fourth wall) missing.
• Center Line.     Imaginary line running down the stage through the exact center of the proscenium opening. 
• Channel.     A complete control path for signals in lighting or sound equipment. On the lighting board, these are directly controllable by the lighting operator. They are 'patched' to a dimmer or dimmers.
• C-Clamp.     A device used to hold a lighting instrument to a batten.
• Color Mixing.     Combining the effects of two or more lighting gels: (1) Additive:Focusing two differently colored beams of light onto the same area, or (2) Subtractive: Placing two different gels in front of the same lantern. 
• Company (people).     The cast, crew and other staff associated with a show.
• Costumes.     A set of clothes worn by an actor for a particular role.
• Crew.     A collective term for the people who work backstage and run the equipment needed for a show. This is also known as the technicians.
• Cross Fade.     Bringing a new lighting state up whilst bringing the previous one down, so that the new one completely replaces the old one.

Quiz #3

• Cue.     The command given to technical departments to carry out a particular operation.
• Cue to Cue.     Cutting out action and dialogue between cues during a technical rehearsal, to save time. 
• Cue Sheet.     A tabulated list of actions that must be taken by a technical department at a particular point in the show. 
• Curtain Time.     The advertised start time of the performance.
• Cyclorama (Cyc).     A curved plain cloth filling the rear of the stage, often used as a sky backing.
• Dark.     A venue that has been closed to the public. 
• Deck.     This is the common term for the floor surface of the stage.
• Designer.     Create stage pictures that define the space, sound, costume and props that you see when you watch a performance.
• Dimmer.     Electrical or electronic device which controls the amount of electricity passed to a lantern, and therefore the intensity of the lamp.
• DMX Cable.     A standard for digital communication networks that are commonly used to control stage lighting and effects.

Quiz #4

• Downlight.     An instrument hung above the acting area and focused directly below on the performers.
• Dresser.     Technicians who assist actors with costume care and changes during a performance.
• Dress Rehearsal.     A full run thru of the show with all technical and creative elements brought together. A practice without an audience of a show as it should be performed on opening night.
• Drop.     A piece of scenic canvas, painted or plain, that is flown or fixed to hang in a vertical position.
• Dry Tech.     A rehearsal without actors to practice the integration of lighting, sound, and scenic changes.
• Edison.     The most common types of lighting instrument plugs and outlets that you will find in the theatre. They refer to your standard household plug. 
• Electrics.     A batten used to support lighting equipment in a theater.
• Ellipsoidals (ERS).      A spotlight that contains a reflector that was designed for long throws, and is more efficient than conventional spotlights, reflecting rays that others waste.
• Fill Light.     Used to eliminate shadows.
• Fire Curtain.     A heavy drop just upstage of the proscenium to separate the audience from the stage. This can help prevent the spread of smoke to the house in the event of an emergency.

Quiz #5

• Flat.     A lightweight timber frame covered with scenic canvas, or plywood. 
• Floor Pocket.     A metal box placed in the floor of a theater and containing jacks for electric cables used in lighting and sound.
• Flown.     This usually pertains to pulling ropes in the counterweight system to raise and lower battens and the curtains, drops, lights, or scenery that is attached to them.
• Follow Spot.      A powerful profile instrument usually fitted with its own dimmer, iris, color magazine and shutters mounted in or above the auditorium, used with an operator so that the light beam can be moved around the stage to follow an actor. 
• Focus (lighting).     Description of how sharply defined a light beam is from an instrument.
• Fly Crew.     Term for the operators of the theatre's counterweight system. 
• Fly Gallery.     High working platform at the side of the stage from which the flying lines are handled.
• Fresnel.     A type of instrument which produces an even, soft-edged beam of light through a lens with a series of stepped concentric circles on the front and pebbled.
• Front of House (foh).     The area where all instruments are hung in the catwalk.
• Front Wash.     A general fill of light and color evenly across the stage and colored using colored lighting gels from the FOH lighting position.

Quiz #6

• Gaff Tape.     It is used in the theatre for all sorts of uses, including securing items and cables. It lifts off fairly easily and doesn’t leave a sticky mess. It usually comes in black, although it can be purchased in a variety of colors and widths. In different colors, it is often used to spike the stage.
• Garage Door.     A large roll-up door, usually made of metal, that is tall enough and wide enough to move large pieces of scenery through. It is typically between the scene shop and  the loading dock of a theatre.
• Gel.     A sheet of plastic usually composed of a colored resin sandwiched between two clear pieces. 
• Gel Frame.     This is the metal frame that holds a square of gel* in place in front of the lighting instrument*. There is a slot in the front of the lighting instrument* where the gel frame slides into.
• Genie.     A compressed air lifting device used to reach instruments while focusing.
• Ghost Light.     A light left burning overnight on stage to keep friendly spirits illuminated and unfriendly spirits at bay.
• Glow Tape.     When activated by bright light, this tape glows in the dark. It is primarily used backstage (sometimes on stage) at the edge of platforms, stairs, etc, so that actors, crew and techs can see the edge and don’t trip and fall during a blackout.
• Grand.     A curtain closest to the proscenium, usually mode of the same material as the act curtain and used to lower the height of the proscenium opening.
• Ground Row.     A low profile of scenery that constant by itself, used to mask the bottom of the cycle or backdrop and to give the illusion of distance.
• Gobo.     A thin metal plate etched to produce a design which can then be projected by a profile spotlight.