Theatre words for Alias — stage, backstage, circus

Curtain, interval, clown and prompter. For people who love the last bell before the show.

A set about the theatre from both sides of the footlights: what the audience sees and what happens in the wings. Roles and crafts, genres from opera to stand-up, the parts of the stage and the auditorium, and the circus too — the ring, the acrobats, the magicians. No show titles or actor names.

Who this set is for

Anyone who has been to a school play or a circus knows the first level: curtain, clown, applause. Then come interval, prompter and wings — words everyone has heard, but they are harder to explain without some time in a theatre. The third level — proscenium, greenroom, soliloquy — is for keen theatregoers and anyone who once acted in a drama club.

Who this set is for

A group that goes to the theatre more than once a year at Christmas, amateur actors and everyone who grew up on school plays. The easy level is great with children: the circus and fairytale roles are familiar to all. Put the hard one where at least one person has seen a theatre from behind the curtain.

Interval

Works: “the gap between the acts when everyone rushes to the bar and queues for the toilets.” A familiar moment from a night at the theatre. Does not work: “a break in the show” — the room says break and waits to be told it is right, and you spend half a minute moving them on.

Prompter

Works: “the person hidden by the stage who whispers the line when an actor forgets it.” One picture and the word is there. Does not work: “an actor's helper” — the dresser, the makeup artist and the understudy fit just as well, and the room guesses at random.

Greenroom

Works: “the room backstage where actors wait with tea between their scenes.” One place you can picture instead of a definition. Does not work: “a space for performers” — the room goes to dressing room, wings and stage and never gets there.

Where groups go wrong

The first trap is play titles and famous characters. “The one where he asks whether to be or not to be” lands for some in a second and knocks others out of the round. Explain the thing itself, not a famous production. The second is mixing up the sides of the stage: audience words (stalls, balcony, box) and backstage words (wings, flies, greenroom) sound alike, so say straight away where we are looking from. The third is the circus: the room turns every performer into an acrobat. Explain through the trick the person does: walks the wire, puts a head in the lion's mouth, throws knives.

First say where we are: in the seats, on the stage or behind it.
Explain a circus act through the trick: "walks a wire high under the tent" is a tightrope walker.
Tie theatre words to the audience's evening: the bell, the bar, the cloakroom, the ticket stub.

Easy

Familiar words that land on the first clue. For warming up, for kids and for mixed groups.

theatre, stage, actor, actress, audience, seat, ticket, curtain, applause, show, play, role, costume, makeup, mask, scenery, director, puppet, clown, circus, ring, acrobat, magician, juggler, lion, elephant, ballet, ballerina, opera, singer, dancer, orchestra, conductor, musician, song, dance, fairytale, prince, king, queen, villain, hero, interval, cloakroom, binoculars, row, balcony, premiere, poster, programme, bouquet, bow, bravo, encore, laughter, spotlight, light, darkness, music, drum, trumpet, mime, trick, rabbit, hat, wand, trampoline, hoop, wig, cloak, crown, sword, host, concert, queue, bell, tent, candyfloss, unicycle, star, microphone, tiger, horse, seal, usher, cheer, boo, tears, joke, mirror, smile, fire, shadow, dove, ball, tights, bear, monkey, fairy, witch

Medium

Takes a few sentences and some imagination. The default setting for an ordinary evening.

auditorium, stalls, circle, box, gallery, amphitheatre, wings, footlights, backstage, dressing-room, wardrobe, props, prompter, run-through, troupe, company, producer, playwright, script, libretto, monologue, dialogue, cue, act, scene, understudy, extra, chorus, soloist, debut, tour, festival, sellout, flop, critic, review, ovation, tragedy, drama, melodrama, farce, operetta, cabaret, stand-up, improv, pantomime, puppeteer, marionette, tightrope, lion-tamer, strongman, gymnast, trapeze, ringmaster, illusionist, fire-eater, stilts, somersault, amateur, casting, audition, character, gesture, pause, lighting, technician, choreographer, tutu, overture, aria, duet, tenor, soprano, baritone, matinee, heckler, stagehand, trapdoor, jester, curtain-call, box-office, playbill, showman, showbiz, comedian, stage-fright, rehearsal, lines, ad-lib, knife-thrower, sketch, routine, diction, impression, slapstick, pit, hypnotist, cartwheel, handstand, cast

Hard

Rare or abstract words. More failed rounds, and more laughing at them.

proscenium, greenroom, flies, rigging, scrim, cyclorama, limelight, dramaturgy, impresario, repertoire, repertory, blocking, soliloquy, aside, denouement, prologue, epilogue, vaudeville, burlesque, harlequin, pierrot, columbine, ventriloquist, contortionist, equilibrist, sword-swallower, buffoonery, pratfall, minstrel, troubadour, mummer, pageant, kabuki, tragicomedy, revue, claque, diva, maestro, librettist, score, recitative, coda, pirouette, arabesque, ingenue, typecasting, persona, stagecraft, scenography, costumier, wigmaker, dresser, subtext, pathos, catharsis, thespian, luvvie, ham, corpsing, upstaging, tragedian, followspot, gobo, batten, revolve, apron, masque, exposition, monodrama, one-hander, walk-on, spear-carrier, stage-door, sightline, dimmer, projection, enunciation, raconteur, showstopper, curtain-raiser, intermission, preview, ensemble, aerialist, dressage, bareback, whiteface, greasepaint, residency, opening-night, fakir, sleight, dramatist, callback, promptbook, playhouse, foyer, tout, standby, artiste