Theatre Terms
As a service to the theatre community, AACT provides over 1000 definitions of theatrical terms. Fully searchable, our glossary is helpful for technical staff, directors, actors, producers, or anyone wanting to better understand the inner workings of theatre.
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| Term | Definition | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Counter-Rake (or Counter Rake) |
Refers to the modification of furniture or props by shortening the upstage legs (or lengthening the downstage portion in the case of solid units). so that they can stand level on a raked stage. |
Raked Stage |
| COUNTERWEIGHT | A standard weight (60 or 30 lb.) used in a counterweight flying system. | |
| COUNTERWEIGHT SYSTEM | Method of flying scenery which uses a cradle containing weights to counterbalance the weight of flown scenery. | Fly |
| COUP DE THEATRE | 1) A Theatrical success. 2) A showy or sensational device in stagecraft. 3) A sudden and unforeseen--but not necessarily illogical--turn of events in the course of a play. A French expression, meaning "a theatrical stroke." | |
| COVE | Front of house catwalk lighting positions. | |
| CREATE A ROLE | To play in an acting role in the first production of a dramatic piece. | |
| CREPE HAIR or CREPE WOOL | An artificial, braided hair, commonly made of wool or vegetable fiber, in various colors, used in creating facial hair. It can be cut, combed and glued bit by bit to the face to form a beard, a mustache, sideburns, and eyebrows. | |
| CRESCENT WRENCH | An adjustable wrench, named for the curved shape of the tool. Sometimes called a C-wrench. | C-wrench |
| CREW | The stage crew, the team of workers who handle technical chores during a performance. | |
| CREW CHIEF or CREW HEAD | The chief of the stage staff, in charge of building and shifting scenery. | |
| CROSBYS | A term for saddle and "U" cable clamps (from the manufacturers name). | |
| CROSS | To move across the stage from one position to another, especially when passing in front of another actor. Sometimes, a stage direction, as in "When Ellen enters, cross left." | |
| CROSS FADE | 1) Bringing up a new lighting area onstage while at the same time bringing down another area somewhere else on stage. 2) Also applies to sound effects/music. | |
| CROSSLIGHT or CROSS-LIGHT | To illuminate the stage with two crossing beams of light. Thus, to cross-light, and crosslighting. | |
| CROSSOVER | 1) A route leading from one side of the stage to the other, out of the audiences view. 2) An electronic filter in a sound system that routes sound of the correct frequency to the correct part of the speaker system. Different speakers handle high frequencies (tweeters) and low frequencies (woofers). Sometimes known as a crossover network. An active crossover splits the signal from the mixing desk into high, mid and low frequencies which are then sent to three separate amplifiers. | |
| CSI | Compact Source Iodide : A high intensity discharge lamp. Most often used in followspots, because it has a color temperature (approx. 4000K) close to that of the tungsten halogen lamps. | |
| CUE | 1) The last words of one actor's spoken dialogue, which the next actor to speak needs as a signal to begin. When actors leave dead space before beginning their lines of dialogue, a director may ask them to "Pick up your cues." 2) The spoken or written command given to technical staff to carry out a particular operation during a performance. A cue may indicate a change in lighting levels, run a sound effect, or close the main drape. Normally given by stage management, but may be taken directly from the action (i.e. a Visual Cue). | |
| CUE LIGHT | System for giving technical staff silent cues by light. Red light means stand-by or warn, green light means go. Ensures greater precision when visibility or audibility of actors is limited. Sometimes used for cueing actors onto the set. For technical cues, lights are normally now used just as a backup to cues given over the headset system. | |
| CUE TO CUE | Cutting out action and dialogue between cues during a technical rehearsal, to save time. | |
| CUEING | A standard sequence for giving verbal cues : "Stand-by Sound Cue 19" (Stand-by first) "Sound Cue 19 Go" (Go last). |
