Technical Theatre: Scenic

Scenic Designs

Ground plan (birds eye view), section, elevations (front view)

Cut List

a written list for how many pieces are needed for the project, and what size each piece is

Types of Theatre

Proscenium: standard

Black Box: audience on all four sides

Area Stages/In the Round: similar to black box, big circle

Thrust: audience on three sides

Rigging

is the act of hanging scenery, lights or other objects in the air.

Fly

to hang or suspend an item

Fly System

a system of ropes, blocks (pulleys), and counterweights used to suspend curtains, lights, scenery, etc.

Counterweight

a weight, added to an operating line to counterbalance the weight of a moving piece.

Dead Hang

An item that is hung from overhead that is not intended to move.

Hemp System

old-school system of rope pulling, used sandbags for counterweight

Single Purchase Counterweight System

most common, uses an arbor to hold counterweight, arbor moves with full travel of batten

Double Purchase Counterweight System

added pulleys on arbor means purchase line moves twice the distance as arbor travels, hard to operate

Fly Loft

space above the stage, extension of the stage walls up to allow scenery to be flown up until it is out of sight of the audience

Spot Rigged

a single line (as compared to a system of lines) intended for a specific purpose