| A | B |
|---|
| Cue | Words, actions, or technical effects that are signals to all onstage that something is about to happen or be said. |
| Down (or dowstage) | The front of the stage. |
| Up (or upstage) | The back of the stage. |
| Cover | To ad-lib when smoothing over a mistake or to obstruct the audience's view. |
| Stage business | For example, picking up a book or opening a letter onstage. |
| Feeding | Supplying lines or actions that can be used as fuel for laughs or to make a point. |
| C | The symbol that represents the center of the stage. |
| Ad-lib | Any improvised stage business or conersation. |
| Scene-stealing | Diverting attention from the character that the audience should be watching. |
| Tempo | The speed at which a play moves along. |
| emotional (subjective acting) | An approach to acting in which actors actually weep, suffer, or struggles emotionally. |
| technical (objective acting) | An approach to acting that relies heavily on acting technique and analysis of the play and characters' personalities. |
| Konstantin Stanislovski | The director who developed a theory of acting known as "The Method". |
| "magic if" | This term refers to the question, "What would I do if the events in this play were happening to me?" |
| leading roles | A play's main characters. |
| supporting roles | Roles that are slightly less prominent than the leading roles but no less important. |
| set props | Items placed onstage for use by the actors. |
| hand props | Items carried onstage by an actor. |
| typecasting | Repeatedly casting someone in the same type of role. |
| straight parts | A role played by an actor who resembles the character being portrayed. |
| character parts | A role played by an actor who does not necessarily resembe the character being portrayed |
| foil | A role used for comparison with another character, usually the protagonist. |
| ingenue | A young female lead between the ages of sixteen and thirty. |
| juvenile | A young male lead between the ages of sixteen and thirty. |
| building a scene | Using increased tempo, volume, and emphasis to bring a scene to its climax. |
