STAGE DIRECTIONS
Objectives
To understand and practice body positioning
To become familiar with the areas of the stage
To use movement to create expression of thought, feeling and character
To plot and execute stage directions
1. _____________________________: the part of the stage that is visible to the
audience.
2. _____________________________: the part of the stage that is NOT visible to the
audience.
3. _____________________________: playing toward the audience while seemingly
conversing with others on stage.
4. _____________________________: movements of parts of the body, such as
shrugging your shoulders.
5. ______________________________: drawing the audience’s attention to yourself
when it should be focused on another character.
6. _______________________________: having an action appear effortless and natural
due to repeating the movement many times.
7. ________________________________: any small action that the actor performs
without major movement.
8. Stages used to be ________________________ so audience could see all of the
actors.
9. Raked: ________________________
10. Now stages are flat and audiences raked to improve __________________________.
11. Sightlines: imaginary lines indicating visibility of stage areas.
12.
AUDIENCE
13. Strongest acting area is ______________________________ and stage right. Most
important scenes are done here.
14._________________________________: area towards the audience.
15._________________________________: area away from the audience, towards the
back.
16. ________________________________:facing the audience straight on
17. _______________________________: completely turned away from the audience.
18. _______________________________:half way between full front and stage
left/right.
19. ________________________________: half way between full back and stage
left/right.
20. ________________________________: sideways to the audience.
21. ________________________________: standing on a step or an increment higher
than another actor.
22. ________________________________: Sitting, kneeling, leaning forward, standing
on a step lower than another actor.
23. ________________________________: sitting, lying on the floor.
24. ________________________________: in an appealing arrangement or grouping
formed on stage by the performers.
25. _________________________________: planning and working out the movements
and stage grouping for a play.
26. _________________________________: movement across the stage.
27. _________________________________: moving in the opposite direction of an
actor making a cross.
28. __________________________________: the proscenium stage, with its grand
frame, is the most common of all types of stages. The stage is surrounded by three walls
– leaving the 4th wall open.
29. _______________________________: The thrust stage comes in many different
shapes, but always juts out into the audience. The audience sits on three different sides of
the stage.
30. __________________________: the audience sits around this type of stage. Sets
must allow for continuous movement onstage and one that does not block the audience
viewing from any side of the house.