The stage of a theatre is nearly always the first consideration to be made when building one or writing a play. This article outlines the most common ones and the modifications which can be made to them.

Types of stage

The following main layout types exist, each with advantages and disadvantages:

• Proscenium or Proscenium Arch
• In-The-Round

Proscenium stages

A Proscenium Arch stage is one where the acting area is enclosed by four walls with a large archway in the one facing the audience. This means that the audience is placed in a position which provokes the feeling of looking in through a fourth wall.

Raw Proscenium Arch stages are uninvolving but can be improved in this respect with the addition of an Apron (see below.) They have advantages over an In-The-Round stage in that:

• More props can be used
• Backdrops, curtains and lighting can be utilised to greater effect without risk of rigging being visible to the audience
• Entrances and exits can be made more graceful; surprise attacks, etc become possible.
• The actors only have to concentrate on facing the audience in one direction.

Examples:

• Theatre Royal, Plymouth

In-The-Round stages

This method of stage design uses a small stage, set in the centre of a theatre with the audience sat around it, facing all sides. The audience is placed quite close to the action which provokes a feeling of involvement.

In-The-Round stages are an original and different method of stage layout, but have many disadvantages:

• Props are hard to use effectively because they obscure actors and other props from parts of the audience.
• Backdrops and curtains are nigh impossible to use since they prevent viewing by parts of the audience. The director must be able to use sound effects well in order to overcome this.
• Lighting is harder to use than with a Proscenium stage because rigging, the actual lights etc. has to be made visible to most if not all of the audience.
• Entrances and exists must be made either through the audience or via closed-off walkways. The former means that surprise entrances are made very hard indeed, although this does involve the audience more; the latter involves working out how to effectively build an inconspicuous walkway, normally resulting in doors in corners.
• The cast need to concentrate on rotating quite a lot in order to not have their backs turned to any part of the audience for a long period of time.

Examples:

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Additions & Modifications

Proscenium and In-The-Round stage types are only the basic templates for stage layout. There are also extras which can be added in order to improve the stage.

• Aprons are pieces of stage added to the front of a proscenium stage which protrude past the proscenium arch, pushing out into the audience in order to make them feel more involved. They provoke a feeling of being more part of the action, rather than just looking at it through a transparent fourth wall (see above.)

• Boxes are a feature of more modern stage designs where temporary walls are built inside any proscenium stage, at a slight angle to the original walls, in order to allow audience members located to the left or right of the proscenium (the further out, the larger the angle) to see the entirety of the stage. They enable the creation of rat runs around the back of the stage, which allow cast members to walk between entrances and exits without being seen by the audience.