The prompter (sometimes prompt) in a

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

is a person who prompts or cues

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

s when they forget their lines or neglect to move on the

stage Stage or stages may refer to: Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly British theatre newspaper * Sta ...

to where they are supposed to be situated.Kennedy (2010), Pavis (1998, 289), and Taylor (1993, 253—254). Nowadays, many of the earlier duties of the prompter are undertaken by the

stage manager Stage management is a broad field that is generally defined as the practice of organization and coordination of an event or theatrical production. Stage management may encompass a variety of activities including the overseeing of the rehearsal p ...

, who will have a copy of the script called the

prompt book The prompt book, also called transcript, the bible or sometimes simply "the book," is the copy of a production script that contains the information necessary to create a theatrical production from the ground up. It is a compilation of all blocking ...

.Kennedy (2010). This is the most definitive version of the script for any one performance, and will contain details of all cues, with their precise timings with respect to the action on stage.Hartnoll and Found (1996). This allows the prompt to direct

lighting Lighting or illumination is the deliberate use of light to achieve practical or aesthetic effects. Lighting includes the use of both artificial light sources like lamps and light fixtures, as well as natural illumination by capturing daylig ...

sound In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...

, flying effects and scene changes during a show. The prompt book also often contains blocking notes, so that the prompt is always aware of the intended positions and movements of all the actors on stage at any given time. Apuntador (souffleur) del siglo XVIII

In some

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

and high-quality

community theatre Community theatre refers to any theatrical performance made in relation to particular communities—its usage includes theatre made by, with, and for a community. It may refer to a production that is made entirely by a community with no outside he ...

productions, the prompt is never used during a

performance A performance is an act of staging or presenting a play, concert, or other form of entertainment. It is also defined as the action or process of carrying out or accomplishing an action, task, or function. Management science In the work place ...

to instruct actors if they forget a line or movement, only during a

rehearsal A rehearsal is an activity in the performing arts that occurs as preparation for a performance in music, theatre, dance and related arts, such as opera, musical theatre and film production. It is undertaken as a form of practising, to ensure t ...

. If prompting is absolutely necessary, it is done very quietly by another actor on-stage or the conductor of the pit orchestra. The prompt is located on the stage, in the

prompt corner In a theatre, the prompt corner or prompt box is the place where the prompter—usually the stage manager in the US or deputy stage manager in the UK—stands in order to coordinate the performance and to remind performers of their lines when req ...

or "prompt side". In Elizabethan theatre the function of prompting was filled by the Book-Holder, who was also in charge of

prop A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinc ...

s and calls.

References

Sources

* Hartnoll, Phyllis and Peter Found, eds. 1996. ''The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press. . * Kennedy, Dennis, ed. 2010. ''The Oxford Companion to Theatre and Performance.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press. . * Pavis, Patrice. 1998. ''Dictionary of the Theatre: Terms, Concepts, and Analysis''. Trans. Christine Shantz. Toronto and Buffalo: University of Toronto Press. . * Taylor, John Russell. 1993. ''The Penguin Dictionary of the Theatre.'' 3rd ed. London: Penguin. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Prompt (Theatre) Stage terminology Stagecraft Theatrical occupations