When you discuss the fabulous Playshop production you saw last night with anyone who will listen (in Starbucks, at Scoops, in the deli line at Village Market) you will want to sound like you know what you are taking about. For example, anyone can say, “I liked the music last night, and the set was nice”, which we appreciate and would not want you to stop, but wouldn’t it be cooler if you could say, “ The amber gel in the follow-spot upstage left added a poignant counterpoint to the action downstage right which was lit by blue gels and a tree gobo ”. So we offer you the following “living dictionary” of words and terms used at The Wilton Playshop and in the world of theatre.

Individuals who enact, perform and/or create characters and situations using their body and voice during a performance. It used to be that the term actor was used for men and actress for women. Now generally anyone who performs is called an actor.

To improvise words or actions which are not in the script. Sometimes this can be to cover a mistake or because something unexpected happens on or off stage.

An actor who is not a member of a professional acting union. The word comes from the same Latin root as love which is appropriate as community theatre amateur actors love what they do.

A yellowish – reddish light filter or gel varying from the colors “light straw” to “dark flame” commonly used to light a show.

The part of the stage that extends in front of the proscenium arch and main curtain. The Playshop has an apron which is often used as an effective acting area.

The competitive tryout process for a play or musical for performers seeking a role in a production and directors trying to cast those roles. Auditions may include interviews, cold readings from the script, presentation of prepared pieces, improvisations or any combination of these. For musicals, the audition may also include singing all or part of a prepared song, singing all or part of a song from the show and learning and performing a dance routine.

The area beyond and behind the acting area unseen by the audience including the wing space, sides of the stage and the dressing rooms.

Refers to both the precise onstage movement of actors as well as the notation of such movement in the rehearsal script. The director usually determines the positioning of the actors onstage during the rehearsal process to ensure successful communication of the play and proper dramatic effect for the audience. During the rehearsal process, actors may also create effective blocking in collaboration with the director.

A room or space set up for the management of the technical elements of a production. At the Playshop, the booth is located behind the audience above the back of the house and contains a light and sound board.

A traditional way of saying “good luck” to actors before they go onstage. The saying reflects a theatrical superstition that wishing a performer good luck is actually bad luck in the theatre. The exact origin of the phrase is unsure and much debated.

A strange “fluttery” feeling some people have in their stomachs before making an entrance on stage.

(verb) To be chosen to play a specific role in a production (e.g. “I was just cast in the next show at Wilton Playshop!”)

(noun) The group of performers playing roles in a production. (e.g. “It is so much fun being part of the cast of a show at the Playshop.”)

To move from one place to another onstage.

The person who oversees the entire process of creating a stage production.(See: What is a Director)

The area of the stage closest to the audience.

At the Playshop the follow-spot is a large carriage mounted spot light which is moved to “follow” actors around the stage.

An imaginary wall between the actors and the audience in a representational play. “Breaking the fourth wall” is when actors talk directly to the audience.

A thin piece of colored heat-resistant plastic that is placed in a frame on the front of a stage light. They come in hundreds of colors and levels of transparency.

A thin metal sheet with designs cut into it. They are used by placing them into a lighting instrument where they only allow light in the shape of the design to shine through. They are used to cast shadows of shape on the set. Often used to increase the effect of set pieces. For instance shadows of leaves and trees would be used for a forest scene.

The audience seating area. In the case of The Playshop it was built in 1871 and moved to Lovers Lane in 1953.

The left side of the audience seating area as one faces the stage.

The right side of the audience seating area as one faces the stage.

To ad lib dialogue or perform actions which are not scripted.

Refers to scenes played in front of the main curtain or the area in front of the first curtain legs.

A curtain or scenery flat used to mask the wing space.

A plan for the lighting of a production. A light plot consists of scale drawing of each electric with the lighting instruments hung from each and the areas of the stage to be illuminated by each instrument. In addition, information concerning the type of instrument, its focus, and the gel color is often noted on the light plot. The term lighting plot is also used to refer to the list of cues from which the lighting operator works during a performance.

Originally derives from the lime, or calcium flare, first used in early 19th Century theatre, which gave off a brilliant white light primarily used for illuminating the main actor or actors. This led to the phrase “in the limelight.”

An afternoon performance.

Speech given by a single actor. Similar to soliloquy. The speech is generally made by the actor as if speaking to himself or directly to the audience and often reveals his or her inner thoughts or feelings.

In Greek mythology the nine muses were the daughters of Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory. Three of the muses were particularly connected with theatre: Melpomene (the muse of tragedy), Terpischore (the muse of dancing) and Thalia (the muse of comedy).

A form of theatre in which the story is told through a combination of spoken dialogue (known as the book) and musical numbers. Musical numbers may include dancing as well as singing. Development of the musical so that the music and lyrics (and often dance) became integral to the plot was particularly advanced by innovative musicals such as Showboat (1927) and Oklahoma! (1943) and West Side Story (1957). The first “book’ musical done at The Wilton Playshop was Pal Joey in 1961.