Know the Language

Confused by the jargon? Want to be in the loop? Look here for answers and then YOU can talk like a true techie!

Acting

Blocking

Blocking is where the actors figure out where they are going to go, how they’re going to get there, and what they’re going to do as they go there. Basically, all the physical movement in a play or musical that isn’t dance. How to use in a sentence: The fourth rehearsal was dedicated to blocking. The director wanted to make sure that there were no sight line issues, so every move was carefully blocked.

Costume
Dress Parade	Also called a Costume Parade, this is where the actors try on all their costumes and bits and show the director what it looks like. It’s really a bit fashion show where the costumers find out what works, what doesn’t, and whose measurements have changed. How to use in a sentence: “Dress parade was a nightmare!”

Light & Sound
Antiprose	The antiprose is a lighting position that is to the front and side of the stage, right on the sides of the house. It’s particularly useful for lighting the apron and front of the stage and good for gobo throws How to use in a sentence: “If you want that CCT in the antiprose, you’re hanging it yourself!”
Board Operator (op)	The board op is the one who runs the light/sound board for a show. They’re the ones who set the levels of the lights/sound and record them for the cues. They’re the ones who get to make sure that everything works before a show and are responsible for making the cues happen the way the designers and the director want them to. How to use in a sentence: The stage manager was furious when the board op didn’t wait for the ‘go’. How to use as a verb: “I’m sorry, but I can’t come to your party tonight because I’m board opping.”
Boom	Also known as a tree, a boom is free-standing pole that has lights or speakers hung on it. How to use in a sentence: “I want the six booms to line up with the electrics, one on each side. Make sure that they won’t get in the way of the lines, though.”
Catwalks	Catwalks (or beams) are walkways above the audience where lights (and sometimes projectors) are hung. The number of catwalks varies from theatre—some have one, some have two, some have none—you get the picture. How to use in a sentence: “Fresnels don’t make the throw from our catwalks; we only use ellipsoidals up there.”
Confetti Cannon	A confetti cannon is a tube that is connected up to a CO2 cartilage. From here, things like streamers, cotton balls, confetti, and balloons can be loaded into it to be shot on stage as a special effect. How to use in a sentence: For our production of You Can’t Take It With You, we had a confetti cannon under the trap door that we shot off at the end of the act.
Cove	The cove is a place for hanging lights in front of the proscenium over the apron. Not every theatre will have one. How to use in a sentence: “I think I can hit that if I hang something in the cove.”
Cyclorama	A cyclorama (usually shortened to ‘cyc’) is similar to a scrim as it’s a huge drop. However, cycs do not become translucent when light is shined through the back. They are designed that they will let light in from the back, but it looks almost identical as when you shine light in from the front. Think of a movie screen—a really, really big movie screen—and that’s pretty similar to a cyc. How to use in a sentence: With the blue on the cyc, it created a very dramatic silhouette of the dancers.
Electrician	The lighting crew, more or less. The brute force of a light shop. They’re the ones who physically hang the lights, do all the cabling, and the ones who do most of the troubleshooting. How to use in a sentence: The electricians worked efficiently and got the plot hung before lunch break.
Flash Pot	A flash pot is used in pyrotechnics. It’s a smallish cup-like bit that holds all the stuff like the flash paper and powder, and any other special effect powders being used. How to use in a sentence: The actors were incredibly nervous about the spots where they were supposed to be chasing the beans because the flash pots would explode very close to them.
Fly system/Rigging system	Fly systems are a series of weighted pulley lines. They have numerous uses in a theatre. Sets pieces and lighting instruments can be hung on them, curtains and teasers often are a hung on them, and things like the ‘moon’ can be flown in and out (brought up and down) of a scene. Fly systems are made up of lines and a theatre can have as many as a hundred lines or they might have only a few. Line refer to the individual pulley set. They consist of an arbour, which is where all the stages weights (often measured in bricks and half bricks) go to counter-balance the weight of the baton and all the things on it. Batons are the metal bars that stretch the length of the stage and where everything is hung. The pinrail refers to the area where the fly system is and the loading gallery is an area above the stage where the technicians can put stage weights on the arbour while the line is in (down). How to use any of these in a sentence: “CLEAR THE PINRAIL!!.” “Our fly system is comparable to the one at the Guthrie.” “Line 23, coming IN!” “How many weights are on the arbour? ‘Cuz we have about five bricks worth on this baton.”
Grid	A grid is the area at the very top of the theatre above the stage. It’s right about where the batons sit when they’re not in use. It’s important to the fly systems in the theatre, both for maintenance and for storage. Grid boxes—which are moveable circuits that can be dropped in for a line—are stored in the grid when they are not on a line. Not every theatre will have a grid. How to use in a sentence: Ran once accidentally dropped his wrench from the grid and nearly brained Brian.
Hazer	A hazer is a machine that puts particles in the air so that light beams can be seen. Popular for rock concerts and dance shows. Similar to a fog machine, but puts out far less stuff. How to use in a sentence: “Oh, this one is all about the break-up being seen; we’re going to have to set up the hazer for this show.”
Lighting Designer	The lighting designer is responsible for creating the concept and lighting for a show. They are the ones who decide what lights will go where, how the lights will be focused, what colours will be used, and what the cues will look like. They draw the plot (or at least, conceptualise it), do all the paperwork to go with the plot (if they do not have an assistant designer), and are in charge of making sure that the director’s artistic vision is met. How to use in a sentence: “The lighting designer has the crappiest hand-writing I’ve ever seen! How are we supposed to know what he wants?”
Lighting Plot	The lighting plot is how the electricians know where to hang the lights, what kind of instrument it is and what number it is, how many types of instrument it is and how many will be need, what the light does, what colour gel the light is (if it has one), if it has a gobo, and what dimmer it’s plugged into. Some plots also have the channel number for each instrument on them as well. The plot tells you a lot of the technical details of the hang. How to use in a sentence: They say the new standard for plots is now one-half inch instead of quarter-inch scale.
Master Electrician	While the lighting designer is charge of making the artistic decisions of the lighting aspects, the master electrician’s job is to make it happen. They are the ones who make the plot a reality. If a light won’t work where the designer wants it to be—for whatever reason—it’s the master electrician who decides what will happen to it. They are in charge of the crew and are the ones to go to when things go wrong, as they (should) have the know-how to fix it. How to use in a sentence: “Our master electrician got mad with the designer about the placement of that mini-par.”
Scrim	Scrims are really big drops that are woven and have the unique property of looking solid when lit from the front and looking translucent when lit from the back. How to use in a sentence: “I liked how they used that scrim in Chicago during Mama Morton’s first song.”

Other
House	The House simply refers to the space that the audience sits in. How to use in a sentence: “We have a full house tonight, so be quiet if you’re up on the beams!”

Scenic
Set	The set is simply anything used to help denote a scene. All furniture, walls, stairs, floors, and drops are a part of the set. How to use in a sentence: “The set was pretty fantastic.”

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