TYPES OF THEATRE

Types of theatre

INDEX

03

01

Thrust

Arena

04

02

Black box

Proscenium

ARENA

A theatre in which the audience completely surrounds the stage or playing area. Actor entrances to the playing area are provided through vomitories or gaps in the seating arrangement

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THRUST

A theatre in which the stage is extended so that the audience surrounds it on three sides. The thrust stage may be backed by an enclosed proscenium stage, providing a place for background scenery, but audience views into the proscenium opening are usually limited. Actor entrances are usually provided to the front of the thrust through vomitories or gaps in the seating.

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Proscenium

In a proscenium theatre, the stage is located at one end of the auditorium and is physically separated from the audience space by a proscenium wall. This is sometimes called a “two-box” arrangement—the auditorium and stage occupy two separate “boxes” or rooms. The stage box (stagehouse) provides fly space and wings and permits a wide variety of scenic and lighting effects. The auditorium box is the audience chamber, which may take many forms— fan-shaped, courtyard, lyric, etc.

The opening between the auditorium and stage is called the proscenium frame, proscenium opening, proscenium arch, or simply the proscenium. In its earliest forms, the heart of the proscenium theatre was the forestage in front of the proscenium. It wasn’t until the middle part of the nineteenth century that performers were confined with the scenery behind the proscenium arch. Contemporary proscenium theatres try to provide a flexible transition zone between stage and audience, adaptable to suit the needs of each performance.

Black box

A flexible theatre usually without character or embellishment—a “void” space that may indeed be black, but isn’t always. Usually, audience seating is on the main floor, with no audience galleries, though a technical gallery may be provided

Video 1

Globe theatre

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Video 2

Black box

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