![The Shed at night](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/The_Shed_at_night.jpg)
![Palais Garnier](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Palais_Garnier._December_5%2C_2010.jpg)
A theater, theatre or playhouse, is a structure where
theatrical
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, 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 p ...
works,
performing arts
The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which are the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. Perform ...
and musical
concerts
A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or musical band, band. Concerts are held in a w ...
are presented. The theater building serves to define the performance and
audience
An audience is a group of people who participate in a show or encounter a work of art, literature (in which they are called "readers"), theatre, music (in which they are called "listeners"), video games (in which they are called "players"), or ...
spaces. The facility usually is organized to provide support areas for performers, the technical crew and the audience members, as well as the stage where the performance takes place.
There are as many types of theaters as there are types of performance. Theaters may be built specifically for a certain types of productions, they may serve for more general performance needs or they may be adapted or converted for use as a theater. They may range from open-air
amphitheater
An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
s to ornate,
cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...
-like structures to simple, undecorated rooms or
black box theater
A black box theater is a simple performance space, typically a square room with black walls and a flat floor. The simplicity of the space allows it to be used to create a variety of configurations of stage and audience interaction. The black ...
s. A theatre used for
opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...
performances is called an
opera house
An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets.
While some venues are constructed specifically for o ...
. A theater is not required for performance (as in
environmental theater or
street theater
Street theatre is a form of theatrical performance and presentation in outdoor public spaces without a specific paying audience. These spaces can be anywhere, including shopping centres, car parks, recreational reserves, college or university c ...
), this article is about structures used specifically for performance. Some theaters may have a fixed acting area (in most theaters this is known as 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 ...
), while some theaters, such as black box theaters have movable seating allowing the production to create a performance area suitable for the production.
Elements of a theater building
![Vienna - Vienna Opera Backstage - 9706](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Vienna_-_Vienna_Opera_Backstage_-_9706.jpg)
A theater building or structure contains spaces for an event or performance to take place, usually called 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 ...
, and also spaces for the audience, theater staff, performers and crew before and after the event.
There are usually two main entrances of a theater building. One is at the front, used by the audience, and leads into a foyer and ticketing. The second is called the stage door, and it is accessible from backstage. This is where the cast and crew enter and exit the theater, and fans sometimes wait outside it after the show in order to get autographs, called "stage dooring".
Stage
The acting or performance space is the stage. In some theaters, such as
proscenium theaters, arena theaters and amphitheaters, this area is permanent part of the structure. In some theaters the stage area can be changed and adapted specifically to a production, often called a
black box theater
A black box theater is a simple performance space, typically a square room with black walls and a flat floor. The simplicity of the space allows it to be used to create a variety of configurations of stage and audience interaction. The black ...
, due to the common practice of the walls being painted black and hung with black drapes.
Backstage and offstage
Usually in a building used specifically for performance there are offstage spaces used by the performers and crew. This is where
props
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, distinct ...
,
sets and scenery are stored, and the performers standby before their entrance. These offstage spaces are called wings on either side of a proscenium stage. A
prompter's box may be found backstage. In an amphitheater, an area behind the stage may be designated for such uses while a blackbox theater may have spaces outside of the actual theater designated for such uses.
Often a theater will incorporate other spaces intended for the performers and other personnel. A booth facing the stage may be incorporated into the house where
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 ...
and sound personnel may view the show and run their respective instruments. Other rooms in the building may be used for dressing rooms, rehearsal rooms, spaces for constructing sets, props and
costumes
Costume is the distinctive style of dress or cosmetic of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, profession, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch. In short costume is a cultural visual of the people.
The term also was tradition ...
, as well as storage.
Seating and audience
![Maryland Theatre Hagerstown Historic Auditorium](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Maryland_Theatre_Hagerstown_Historic_Auditorium.jpg)
All theaters provide a space for an audience. In a fixed seating theatre the audience is often separated from the performers by the proscenium arch. In
proscenium
A proscenium ( grc-gre, προσκήνιον, ) is the metaphorical vertical plane of space in a theatre, usually surrounded on the top and sides by a physical proscenium arch (whether or not truly "arched") and on the bottom by the stage floor ...
theaters and
amphitheater
An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
s, the proscenium arch, like the stage, is a permanent feature of the structure. This area is known as the
auditorium
An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theatres, the number of auditoria (or auditoriums) is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoria can be found in entertainment venues, community ...
or the house.
The seating areas can include some or all of the following:
![Interior of Opera and Ballet Theatre Minsk 08](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Interior_of_Opera_and_Ballet_Theatre_Minsk_08.JPG)
* Stalls or arena (in North America, "orchestra"): the lower flat area, usually below or at the same level as the stage. The word ''parterre'' (occasionally, ''parquet'') is sometimes used to refer to a particular subset of this area. In North American usage this is usually the rear seating block beneath the gallery (see below) whereas in Britain it can mean either the area in front near the
orchestra pit
An orchestra pit is the area in a theater (usually located in a lowered area in front of the stage) in which musicians perform. Orchestral pits are utilized in forms of theatre that require music (such as opera and ballet) or in cases when incide ...
, or the whole of the stalls. The term can also refer to the side stalls in some usages. Derived from the gardening term
parterre
A ''parterre'' is a part of a formal garden constructed on a level substrate, consisting of symmetrical patterns, made up by plant beds, low hedges or coloured gravels, which are separated and connected by paths. Typically it was the part of ...
, the usage refers to the sectioned pattern of both the seats of an auditorium and of the planted beds seen in garden construction. Throughout the 18th century the term was also used to refer to the
theater audience who occupied the parterre.
* Balconies or galleries: one or more raised seating platforms towards the rear of the auditorium. In larger theaters, multiple levels are stacked vertically above or behind the stalls. The first level is usually called the dress circle or grand circle. The next level may be the ''loge'', from the French version of ''
loggia
In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior gallery or corridor, usually on an upper level, but sometimes on the ground level of a building. The outer wall is open to the elements, usually supported by a series of columns ...
''. A second tier inserted beneath the main balcony may be the
mezzanine
A mezzanine (; or in Italian language, Italian, a ''mezzanino'') is an intermediate floor in a building which is partly open to the double-height ceilinged floor below, or which does not extend over the whole floorspace of the building, a loft ...
. The highest platform, or upper circle, is sometimes known as
"the gods", especially in large opera houses, where the seats can be very high and a long distance from the stage.
*
Boxes
A box (plural: boxes) is a container used for the storage or transportation of its contents. Most boxes have flat, parallel, rectangular sides. Boxes can be very small (like a matchbox) or very large (like a shipping box for furniture), and can ...
(''state box'' or ''stage box''): typically placed immediately to the front, side and above the level of the stage. They are often separate rooms with an open viewing area which typically seat up to five people. These seats are typically considered the most prestigious of the house. A "state box" or "royal box" is sometimes provided for dignitaries.
* House seats: these are "the best seats in the house", giving the best view of the stage. Though each theater's layout is different, these are usually in the center of the stalls. These seats are traditionally reserved for the cast and crew to invite family members, agents, and others. If they are not used, they usually go on sale on the day of the performance.
History
Open-air theaters
Ancient Greece
Greek theater buildings were called a ''theatron'' ('seeing place'). The theaters were large, open-air structures constructed on the slopes of hills. They consisted of three principal elements: the ''orchestra'', the ''skene'', and the audience.
The centerpiece of the theater was the ''orchestra'', or "dancing place", a large circular or rectangular area. The orchestra was the site of the choral performances, the religious rites, and, possibly, the acting. An
altar
An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...
was located in the middle of the orchestra; in Athens, the altar was dedicated to Dionysus.
Behind the ''orchestra'' was a large rectangular building called the ''skene'' (meaning "tent" or "hut"). It was used as a "backstage" area where actors could change their costumes and masks, but also served to represent the location of the plays, which were usually set in front of a palace or house. Typically, there were two or three doors in the skene that led out onto orchestra, and from which actors could enter and exit. At first, the ''skene'' was literally a tent or hut, put up for the religious festival and taken down when it was finished. Later, the skene became a permanent stone structure. These structures were sometimes painted to serve as backdrops, hence the English word ''
scenery
Theatrical scenery is that which is used as a setting for a theatrical production. Scenery may be just about anything, from a single chair to an elaborately re-created street, no matter how large or how small, whether the item was custom-made or ...
''. A temple nearby, especially on the right side of the scene, is almost always part of the Greek theater complex, which could justify, as a transposition, the recurrence of the
pediment
Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape.
Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds.
A pedimen ...
with the later solidified stone scene.
In front of the ''skene'' there may have been a raised acting area called the ''proskenion'', the ancestor of the modern
proscenium
A proscenium ( grc-gre, προσκήνιον, ) is the metaphorical vertical plane of space in a theatre, usually surrounded on the top and sides by a physical proscenium arch (whether or not truly "arched") and on the bottom by the stage floor ...
stage. It is possible that the actors (as opposed to the chorus) acted entirely on the ''proskenion'', but this is not certain.
Rising from the circle of the orchestra was the audience. The audience sat on tiers of benches built up on the side of a hill. Greek theaters, then, could only be built on hills that were correctly shaped. A typical theater was enormous, able to seat around 15,000 viewers.
Greek theaters were not enclosed; the audience could see each other and the surrounding countryside as well as the actors and chorus.
Ancient Rome
![Theater Orange](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/Theater_Orange.jpg)
The
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
s copied the Greek style of building, but tended not to be so concerned about the location, being prepared to build walls and terraces instead of looking for a naturally occurring site.
The ''
auditorium
An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theatres, the number of auditoria (or auditoriums) is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoria can be found in entertainment venues, community ...
'' (literally "place for hearing" in Latin) was the area in which people gathered, and was sometimes constructed on a small hill or slope in which stacked seating could be easily made in the tradition of the Greek Theatres. The central part of the auditorium was hollowed out of a hill or slope, while the outer radian seats required structural support and solid retaining walls. This was of course not always the case as Romans tended to build their theatres regardless of the availability of hillsides. All theatres built within the city of Rome were completely man-made without the use of earthworks. The auditorium was not roofed; rather, awnings (''vela'') could be pulled overhead to provide shelter from rain or sunlight.
[Richard Allan Tomlinson]
"Theatres (Greek and Roman), structure
, The Oxford Companion to Classical Civilization. Ed. Simon Hornblower and Antony Spawforth. Oxford University Press, 1998. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. Northwestern University. 11 May 2007.
Some Roman theatres, constructed of wood, were torn down after the festival for which they were erected concluded. This practice was due to a moratorium on permanent theatre structures that lasted until 55 BC when the
Theatre of Pompey
The Theatre of Pompey ( la, Theatrum Pompeii, it, Teatro di Pompeo) was a structure in Ancient Rome built during the latter part of the Roman Republican era by Pompey the Great (Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus). Completed in 55BC, it was the first perma ...
was built with the addition of a temple to avoid the law. Some Roman theatres show signs of never having been completed in the first place.
Inside Rome, few theatres have survived the centuries following their construction, providing little evidence about the specific theatres.
Arausio
Orange (; Provençal: ''Aurenja'' or ''Aurenjo'' ) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It is about north of Avignon, on the departmental border with Gard, which follows th ...
, the theatre in modern-day
Orange, France
Orange (; Provençal: ''Aurenja'' or ''Aurenjo'' ) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It is about north of Avignon, on the departmental border with Gard, which follows th ...
, is a good example of a classic Roman theatre, with an indented ''scaenae frons'', reminiscent of Western Roman theatre designs, however missing the more ornamental structure. The
Arausio
Orange (; Provençal: ''Aurenja'' or ''Aurenjo'' ) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It is about north of Avignon, on the departmental border with Gard, which follows th ...
is still standing today and, with its amazing structural acoustics and having had its seating reconstructed, can be seen to be a marvel of Roman architecture.
Elizabethan England
![The Swan cropped](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/The_Swan_cropped.png)
During the
Elizabethan era
The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personifi ...
in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, theaters were constructed of wooden framing, infilled with
wattle and daub
Wattle and daub is a composite building method used for making walls and buildings, in which a woven lattice of wooden strips called wattle is daubed with a sticky material usually made of some combination of wet soil, clay, sand, animal dung a ...
and roofed with
thatch
Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge (''Cladium mariscus''), rushes, heather, or palm branches, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. Since the bulk of ...
. Mostly the theaters were entirely open air. They consisted of several floors of covered galleries surrounding a courtyard which was open to the elements. A large portion of the audience would stand in the yard, directly in front of the stage. This layout is said to derive from the practice of holding plays in the yard of an inn. Archaeological excavations of
The Rose theater at London's
Bankside
Bankside is an area of London, England, within the London Borough of Southwark. Bankside is located on the southern bank of the River Thames, east of Charing Cross, running from a little west of Blackfriars Bridge to just a short distance befor ...
, built 1587, have shown that it had en external diameter of 72 feet (22 metres). The nearby
Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, on land owned by Thomas Brend and inherited by his son, Nicholas Brend, and gra ...
(1599) was larger, at 100 feet (30 metres). Other evidence for the round shape is a line in Shakespeare's Henry V which calls the building "this
wooden O", and several rough woodcut illustrations of the city of London.
![Shakespeare Globe Theater 1 db](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2a/Shakespeare_Globe_Theater_1_db.jpg)
Around this time, the
green room
In show business, the green room is the space in a theatre or similar venue that functions as a waiting room and lounge for performers before, during, and after a performance or show when they are not engaged on stage. Green rooms typically have ...
, a place for actors to wait until required on stage, became common terminology in English theaters.
The Globe has now been rebuilt as a fully working and producing theater near its original site (largely thanks to the efforts of film director
Sam Wanamaker
Samuel Wanamaker, (born Wattenmacker; June 14, 1919 – December 18, 1993) was an American actor and director who moved to the United Kingdom after becoming fearful of being blacklisted in Hollywood due to his communist views. He is credited as ...
) to give modern audiences an idea of the environment for which Shakespeare and other playwrights of the period were writing.
Indoor theaters
Renaissance Europe
During the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
, the first modern enclosed theaters were constructed in Italy. Their structure was similar to that of ancient theaters, with a ''cavea'' and an architectural scenery, representing a city street. The oldest surviving examples of this style are the
Teatro Olimpico
The Teatro Olimpico ("Olympic Theatre") is a theatre in Vicenza, northern Italy, constructed in 1580–1585. The theatre was the final design by the Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio and was not completed until after his death. The ...
in
Vicenza
Vicenza ( , ; ) is a city in northeastern Italy. It is in the Veneto region at the northern base of the ''Monte Berico'', where it straddles the Bacchiglione River. Vicenza is approximately west of Venice and east of Milan.
Vicenza is a th ...
(1580) and the
Teatro all'antica in
Sabbioneta
Sabbioneta ( egl, label= Casalasco-Viadanese, Subiunèda) is a town and in the province of Mantua, Lombardy region, Northern Italy. It is situated about north of Parma, not far from the northern bank of the Po River. It was inscribed in the World ...
(1590).
At the beginning of 17th century theaters had moved indoors and began to resemble the arrangement we see most frequently today, with a stage separated from the audience by a proscenium arch. This coincided with a growing interest in scenic elements painted in perspective, such as those created by
Inigo Jones
Inigo Jones (; 15 July 1573 – 21 June 1652) was the first significant architect in England and Wales in the early modern period, and the first to employ Vitruvian rules of proportion and symmetry in his buildings.
As the most notable archit ...
,
Nicola Sabbatini
Nicola Sabbatini (1574 – 25 December 1654), also known as Niccolò Sabbatini or Nicola Sabbattini, was an Italian architect of the Baroque.
A native of Pesaro, he was extremely influential at the time for his pioneering and inventive desig ...
and the
Galli da Bibiena family
The Galli–Bibiena family, or Galli da Bibiena (also spelled "Bibbiena"), was a family of Italian artists of the 17th and 18th centuries, including:
"Ferdinando Galli Bibiena Online" (overview), John Malyon,
''Artcyclopedia'', 2005, Artcycl ...
. The perspective of these elements could only be viewed properly from the center back of the auditorium, in the so-called "duke's chair." The higher one's status, the closer they would be seated to this vantage point, and the more the accurately they would be able to see the perspective elements.
The first enclosed theaters were court theaters, open only to the sovereigns and the nobility. The first
opera house
An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets.
While some venues are constructed specifically for o ...
open to the public was the
Teatro San Cassiano The Teatro San Cassiano (or Teatro di San Cassiano and other variants) in Venice was the world’s first public opera theatre, inaugurated as such in 1637. The first mention of its construction dates back to 1581. The name with which it is best know ...
(1637) in Venice. The Italian opera houses were the model for the subsequent theaters throughout Europe.
German operatic influence
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
placed great importance on "mood setting" elements, such as a darkened theater, sound effects, and seating arrangements (lowering the
orchestra pit
An orchestra pit is the area in a theater (usually located in a lowered area in front of the stage) in which musicians perform. Orchestral pits are utilized in forms of theatre that require music (such as opera and ballet) or in cases when incide ...
) which focused the attention of audience on the stage, completely immersing them in the imaginary world of the music drama. These concepts were revolutionary at the time, but they have since come to be taken for granted in the modern operatic environment as well as many other types of theatrical endeavors.
Contemporary theaters
Contemporary theaters are often non-traditional, such as very adaptable spaces, or theaters where audience and performers are not separated. A major example of this is the
modular
Broadly speaking, modularity is the degree to which a system's components may be separated and recombined, often with the benefit of flexibility and variety in use. The concept of modularity is used primarily to reduce complexity by breaking a sy ...
theater, notably the
Walt Disney Modular Theater
The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a private art university in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of b ...
. This large theater has floors and walls divided into small movable sections, with the floor sections on adjustable hydraulic pylons, so that the space may be adjusted into any configuration for each individual play. As new styles of theater performance have evolved, so has the desire to improve or recreate performance venues. This applies equally to artistic and presentation techniques, such as
stage lighting
Stage lighting is the craft of lighting as it applies to the production of theater, dance, opera, and other performance arts. .
Specific designs of contemporary live theaters include
proscenium
A proscenium ( grc-gre, προσκήνιον, ) is the metaphorical vertical plane of space in a theatre, usually surrounded on the top and sides by a physical proscenium arch (whether or not truly "arched") and on the bottom by the stage floor ...
,
thrust
Thrust is a reaction force described quantitatively by Newton's third law. When a system expels or accelerates mass in one direction, the accelerated mass will cause a force of equal magnitude but opposite direction to be applied to that syst ...
,
black box theater
A black box theater is a simple performance space, typically a square room with black walls and a flat floor. The simplicity of the space allows it to be used to create a variety of configurations of stage and audience interaction. The black ...
,
theater in the round
A theatre in the round, arena theatre or central staging is a space for theatre in which the audience surrounds the stage.
Theatre-in-the-round was common in ancient theatre, particularly that of Greece and Rome, but was not widely explored aga ...
,
amphitheater
An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
, and
arena
An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...
. In the
classical Indian dance,
Natya Shastra
The ''Nāṭya Śāstra'' (, ''Nāṭyaśāstra'') is a Sanskrit treatise on the performing arts. The text is attributed to sage Bharata Muni, and its first complete compilation is dated to between 200 BCE and 200 CE, but estimates vary ...
defines three stage types. In Australia and New Zealand a small and simple theater, particularly one contained within a larger venue, is called a ''theatrette''. The word originated in 1920s London, for a small-scale music venue.
Theatrical performances can also take place in venues adapted from other purposes, such as train carriages. In recent years the
Edinburgh Fringe
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...
has seen performances in an
Hover Car
Hover may refer to:
* Levitation, the process by which an object or person is suspended by a physical force against gravitation without solid physical contact
Computing
*Hover (domain registrar)
*''Mouse hover'' or mouseover, a gesture made with ...
and a
taxi
A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice ...
.
File:Tampereen Teatteri.JPG, The Tampere Theatre
The Tampere Theatre ( fi, Tampereen Teatteri) is one of the two main active theatres in Tampere, Finland, along with the Tampere Workers' Theatre. The theatre was started in 1904 and the opening ceremony was held in 1913.
The main location of the ...
in Tampere
Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the urban area has a population o ...
, Finland
File:Houston Texas Alley Theater 2003.jpg, The Alley Theatre
The Alley Theatre is a Tony Award-winning theatre company in Houston, Texas. It is the oldest professional theatre company in Texas and the third oldest resident theatre in the United States. Alley Theatre productions have played on Broadway at L ...
, home to the Alley Theatre Company, Houston, Texas
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
File:Queen's Theatre - Ganta - Liberia - 2011.jpg, Queen's Theater (Ganta
Ganta, also known as Gompa City, is a town approximately from Monrovia in Nimba County of northern Liberia. It is located just south of the Guinea border. It is the second-most populous city in Liberia, with an estimated population of 41,106 as o ...
, Liberia
Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...
)
File:The Sydney Opera House (9342488636).jpg, The Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century architec ...
File:Facade of Theatre of São Paulo.jpg, Theatre of São Paulo
São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...
Asian theater design
Noh
![Noh-stage-diagram](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Noh-stage-diagram.png)
The traditional stage used in
Noh
is a major form of classical Japanese dance-drama that has been performed since the 14th century. Developed by Kan'ami and his son Zeami, it is the oldest major theatre art that is still regularly performed today. Although the terms Noh and ' ...
theater is based on a Chinese pattern. It is completely open, providing a shared experience between the performers and the audience throughout the play. Without any prosceniums or curtains to obstruct the view, the audience sees each actor at moments even before entering the primary platform of the stage. The theater itself is considered symbolic and treated with reverence both by the performers and the audience.
The stage includes a large square platform, devoid of walls or curtains on three sides, and traditionally with a painting of a pine tree at the back. The platform is elevated above the place where the audience sits, which is covered in white gravel soil. The four stage corners are marked by cedar pillars, and the whole is topped by a roof, even when the Noh stage is erected indoors. A ceramic jar system under the stage amplifies the sounds of dancing during the performance. There is a small door to permit entry of the musicians and vocalists.
The independent roof is one of the most recognizable characteristic of the Noh stage. Supported by four columns, the roof symbolizes the sanctity of the stage, with its architectural design derived from the worship
pavilion
In architecture, ''pavilion'' has several meanings:
* It may be a subsidiary building that is either positioned separately or as an attachment to a main building. Often it is associated with pleasure. In palaces and traditional mansions of Asia ...
(''
haiden Haiden may refer to:
*A Gewürztraminer wine
* Haiden (Shinto), the hall of worship of a Shinto shrine
See also
* Heiden (disambiguation)
{{disambig ...
'') or sacred dance pavilion (''
kaguraden
The , also called or with reference to the bugaku traditional dance, is the building within a Shinto shrine where the sacred dance (''kagura'') and music are offered to the ''kami'' during ceremonies. '') of
Shinto
Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintois ...
shrines. The roof also unifies the theater space and defines the stage as an architectural entity.
The pillars supporting the roof are named ''shitebashira'' (principal character's pillar), ''metsukebashira'' (gazing pillar), ''wakibashira'' (secondary character's pillar), and ''fuebashira'' (flute pillar), clockwise from upstage right respectively. Each pillar is associated with the performers and their actions.
The stage is made entirely of unfinished ''
hinoki
''Chamaecyparis obtusa'' (Japanese cypress, hinoki cypress or hinoki; ja, 檜 or , ) is a species of cypress native to central Japan in East Asia, and widely cultivated in the temperate northern hemisphere for its high-quality timber and orname ...
'', a Japanese cypress, with almost no decorative elements. The poet and novelist
Toson Shimazaki Toson may refer to:
* Tōson Shimazaki (1872-1943), a Japanese author
* Tosǒn (826-898), also romanized as Doseon
Doseon Guksa (a.k.a. Yogong Seonsa, Yeongi Doseon) was a Korean Buddhist monk (826-898) who lived during the decline of the Silla ...
writes that "on the stage of the Noh theater there are no sets that change with each piece. Neither is there a curtain. There is only a simple panel (''
kagami-ita'') with a painting of a
green pine tree. This creates the impression that anything that could provide any shading has been banished. To break such monotony and make something happen is no easy thing."
Another unique feature of the stage is the ''
hashigakari'', a narrow bridge at upstage right used by actors to enter the stage. ''Hashigakari'' means "suspension bridge", signifying something aerial that connects two separate worlds on a same level. The bridge symbolizes the mythic nature of Noh plays in which otherworldly ghosts and spirits frequently appear. In contrast, ''
hanamichi
The is an extra stage section used in Japanese kabuki theater. It is a long, raised platform, running left of centre to the stage through the audience, connecting to the main stage.
The is typically used for character entrances and exits, t ...
'' in
Kabuki
is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers.
Kabuki is thought to ...
theaters is literally a path (''michi'') that connects two spaces in a single world, thus has a completely different significance.
Kabuki
![Shibai Ukie by Masanobu Okumura](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Shibai_Ukie_by_Masanobu_Okumura.jpg)
The Japanese kabuki stage features a projection called a
hanamichi
The is an extra stage section used in Japanese kabuki theater. It is a long, raised platform, running left of centre to the stage through the audience, connecting to the main stage.
The is typically used for character entrances and exits, t ...
(花道; literally,
flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...
path), a walkway which extends into the audience and via which dramatic entrances and exits are made. Okuni also performed on a hanamichi stage with her entourage. The stage is used not only as a walkway or path to get to and from the main stage, but important scenes are also played on the stage. Kabuki stages and theaters have steadily become more technologically sophisticated, and innovations including revolving stages and trap doors were introduced during the 18th century. A driving force has been the desire to manifest one frequent theme of kabuki theater, that of the sudden, dramatic revelation or transformation.
A number of stage tricks, including actors' rapid appearance and disappearance, employ these innovations. The term ''
keren
Keren may refer to:
Places Inhabited places
* Keren, Eritrea, a city in Eritrea, formerly called Cheren
* Keren Subregion, Anseba region, Eritrea
Other places
* House of Keren, a historical house in Taganrog, Rostov Oblast, Russia
* Keren, a cr ...
'' (外連), often translated ''playing to the gallery'', is sometimes used as a catch-all for these tricks. Hanamichi and several innovations including revolving stage, ''seri'' and ''chunori'' have all contributed to kabuki play. ''Hanamichi'' creates depth and both ''seri'' and ''chunori'' provide a vertical dimension.
Koothambalam
![Koothambalam_at_Koodal_Maanikka_Temple](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Koothambalam_at_Koodal_Maanikka_Temple.JPG)
The Indian Koothambalam temple is a space used to perform
Sanskrit drama
The term Indian classical drama refers to the tradition of dramatic literature and performance in ancient India. The roots of drama in the Indian subcontinent can be traced back to the Rigveda (1200-1500 BCE), which contains a number of hymns in ...
. Called the koothambalam or kuttampalam, it is a large high-caste rectangular, temple in Kerala which represented a “visual sacrifice” to any deities or gods of the temple. They were built for kutiyattam or “combined acting” performances, which only two dramas are performed today.
[Sorgenfrei, Carol Fisher, et al. ''Theatre Histories: An Introduction''. 2nd ed., Routledge, 2007.]
The temple has a pyramidal roof, with high walls, and a high-ceilinged interior. Within the large temple has a stage inside which is a large platform with its own pyramid roof. The stage area is separate from the audience area with the musician (a drummer on a high seat) behind the stage, and dressing rooms also at the rear with exit doors behind. The audience would be seated on a smooth, polished floor. Several Koothambalams exist within several Indian temples, and follow the same rectangular plan and structure.
See also
*
Auditorium
An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theatres, the number of auditoria (or auditoriums) is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoria can be found in entertainment venues, community ...
*
Entertainment
Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousa ...
*
Learning space
Learning space or learning setting refers to a physical setting for a learning environment, a place in which teaching and learning occur. The term is commonly used as a more definitive alternative to " classroom," but it may also refer to a ...
*
List of national theaters
*
The Theatre of Small Convenience
The Theatre of Small Convenience was a theatre in Malvern, Worcestershire, England. In 2002 it entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's smallest commercial theatre, seating up to 12 people.
It is less than half the size of the ...
, the smallest theater in the world
References
External links
Carthalia – Theatres on Postcards(pictures of theaters)
Contains archive material on hundreds of British Theater buildings.
A database of theatre buildings in Europe.
{{Authority control
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Building types
Dance venues