| DAT |
Sound recording term: digital audio tape. A very high quality
audio recording method in which sound is digitally recorded on tape (often
video S-VHS tapes are used). |
| DBO |
Lighting term. Dead blackout: a sudden, instantaneous switching off of all
lights. |
| DSL |
Down stage left: towards the front of the stage on the left-hand side as
you look at the audience. |
| DSR |
Down stage right. |
| Deputy Stage Manager |
(DSM) The deputy to the Stage Manager (qv). He usually runs the corner (qv)
and is therefore responsible for the minute by minute running of the show.
|
| Designer |
Designs all aspects of the production: set, costumes, wigs, make-up etc..
Not, however, responsible for lighting design, although he will work closely
with the Lighting Designer (qv). |
| Desk |
See "Board" |
| Die |
A production is said to die if it fails to please the public and so is
taken off. In the much less polite circles of the variety world, a show or act
which fails to draw applause is said to "die on its arse". |
| Dimmer |
A piece of equipment for varying the amount of electricity sent to a
lantern, thus varying its brightness. Sometimes (inaccurately) used for the
fader which controls the dimmer. Originally dimmers were variable resistors but
now are either thyristors or triacs, i.e. they work electronically rather than
by physically moving a resistor along a coil of wire. The verb "to
dim" can be used to mean increase ("dim up") or reduce
("dim down") the amount of light, or even switch it off entirely
("dim out"). |
| Dips |
Electrical socks set into the floor of either the stage or the wings (qv),
and, usually, covered by little trapdoors. |
| Director |
In control of all aspects of the production.(S)he develops the concept of
the production, briefs the designer and lighting designer, plots the actor's
moves, rehearses the actors, etc. etc. etc.. |
| Doubling |
One actor taking more than one part in a play. |
| Downstage |
Towards the audience. |
| Dresser |
One whose job it is to help an actor (or actors) in quick changes of
costume. |
| Dry |
Verb: an actor who forgets his words is said to "dry". Can also
be used as a noun. |
| Effects Spot |
A spotlight (qv) which projects a slide, or a still or moving picture, i.e.
of rain or clouds, onto the stage or, more usually, the cyclorama. |
| Fade |
Sound and lighting term: to increase (fade up), decrease (fade down) or
eliminate (fade out) gradually the brightness of a lantern or the volume of a
sound. |
| Fit up |
Not something done by the police (allegedly!), but actually building up the
set (qv) on-stage. |
| Flat |
An oblong frame of timber, covered with either canvas or hardboard and
painted, which forms part of the set. There are also door flats, window flates,
even fireplace flats. Canvas flats, being lighter and easier to move around,
are the preferred option, but schools often go for hardboard-covered flats
which are more hardwearing. |
| Floats |
A rather old-fashioned term for Footlights (qv). |
| Flood |
A floodlight: a lantern which gives a wide-spreading, unfocused beam of
light. These can be symmetric (i.e. casting the light equally in all
directions) or asymmetric (casting it more in one direction than the others).
The symmetric flood is probably the cheapest stage lantern - and the least
useful! |
| Fly |
Verb: scenery which is raised into the roof (flown out) or lowered on the
stage (flown in). The apparatus for doing this consists of a series of ropes
and pulleys in the "fly tower" (a very high roof space) and they
raise or lower the scenery by means of a counterweight system or by directly
pulling on "hemp lines". The men who operate the "flies"
are called "flymen" and the area in which they work is called the
"fly floor" of, quite simply, the "flies". People can also
be flown (as in every production of "Peter Pan"!) in a harness. |
| Focus |
Verb used in lighting: to point the lanterns (qv) in the right direction
and set the correct beam-spread and edge. |
| FoH |
Front of House: anything which happens on the audience side of the curtain
is said to happen "front of house". The term "the house" is
used to mean either the auditorium, or the audience ("We had a good house
tonight"), or even the theatre itself. The Royal Opera House, Covent
Garden, is also known as "The House" (with capital letters, of
course!). |
| Follow-spot |
A type of profile (qv) spotlight (qv) with an irs diaphragm and a handle so
that it can be used to follow a performer around the stage in a beam of light
of exactly the right size. Traditionally called a "lime": hence the
term "being in the limelight". These produce a very bright beam of
light which is more powerful than that produced by any other lanterns. Modern
limes almost always use CSI lamps (qv). |
| Footlights |
A series of floodlights (qv) placed on the stage floor along the front of
the stage. Traditional in variety theatres, foots are nowadays rarely used.
|
| Fresnel |
A kind of spotlight (qv) in which the light is concentrated by a fresnel
lens (a lens with concentric ridged rings). Projects a variable angle
soft-edged beam. Sometimes called a frênel and given the French
pronunciation. |
| FX |
Effects: usually sound effects in the theatre but can also refer to
pyrotchnics (qv). In film, usually refers to visual (i.e. computer generated)
effects. |
