theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

, a thrust stage (a platform stage or open stage) is one that extends into the audience on three sides and is connected to the backstage area by its upstage end. A thrust has the benefit of greater intimacy between performers and the audience than a

proscenium A proscenium (, ) is the virtual vertical plane of space in a theatre, usually surrounded on the top and sides by a physical proscenium arch (whether or not truly "arched") and on the bottom by the stage floor itself, which serves as the frame ...

, while retaining the utility of a backstage area. This is in contrast to a theatre in the round, which is exposed on all sides to the audience, is without a backstage, and relies entirely on entrances in the

auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoriums can be found in entertainment venues, community halls, and t ...

or from under the stage. Entrances onto a thrust are most readily made from backstage, although some theatres provide for performers to enter through the audience using vomitory entrances. As with an arena, the audience in a thrust stage theatre may view the stage from three or more sides. Because the audience can view the performance from a variety of perspectives, it is usual for the blocking, props and scenery to receive thorough consideration to ensure that no perspective is blocked from view. A high-backed chair, for instance, when placed stage right, could create a blind spot in the stage left action.

History

The thrust stage is the earliest stage type in western theatre, first appearing in Greek theatres, and its arrangement was continued by the pageant wagon. As pageant wagons evolved into Elizabethan theatre, many of that era's works, including those of

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

, were performed on theatre with an open thrust stage, such as those of the

Globe Theatre The Globe Theatre was a Theater (structure), theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 at Southwark, close to the south bank of the Thames, by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men. It was ...

. The thrust stage was generally out of use for centuries, and was resurrected by

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

when he staged '' Doctor Faustus'' for the Federal Theatre Project in 1937. There, the thrust apron extended over three rows of seats at Maxine Elliott's Theatre, extending 20 feet. "It was constructed especially for the production and was probably one of the first to break out of the procenium arch in a Broadway playhouse", wrote critic Richard France. Later resurrected by director Tyrone Guthrie and designer Tanya Moiseiwitsch, a thrust stage was used in 1953 by the Stratford Shakespeare Festival of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. Their Festival Theatre was originally under a tent, until a permanent thrust stage theatre facility was constructed in 1957. Since that time dozens of other thrust stage venues have been built using the concept.

Examples

North America

Canada

* Prairie Theatre Exchange in Winnipeg, Manitoba * Stratford Festival in Stratford, Ontario

United States

Westminster Playhouse in Westminster California * Casa Mañana in Fort Worth, TX * A Noise Within in Pasadena, CA * ANTA Washington Square Theatre in Greenwich Village, New York (now demolished) *Octagon Stage at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival in Montgomery, Alabama * Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, CA *John W. Huntington Theatre at Hartford Stage in Hartford, Connecticut *

La Nouba ''La Nouba'' was a Cirque du Soleil show that ran for 19 years in a custom-built, freestanding theater at Disney Springs' West Side at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. It was a contemporary circus performance featur ...

stage in Downtown Disney, Florida * Alhambra Dinner Theatre in Jacksonville, Florida * Gateway Theatre in Chicago * Chicago Shakespeare Theatre in Chicago * Ethel M. Barber Theater at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois * Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis * Greenbelt Arts Center in Greenbelt, Maryland * Purple Rose Theatre in Chelsea, Michigan
Pasant Theatre
in East Lansing, Michigan * Crossroads Theater in New Brunswick, New Jersey * George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick, New Jersey *

Circle in the Square Theatre The Circle in the Square Theatre is a Broadway theater at 235 West 50th Street, within the basement of Paramount Plaza, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York, U.S. The current Broadway theater, completed in 1972, i ...

, New York City * Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center, New York * Mystère theater in the Treasure Island hotel in

Paradise, Nevada Paradise is an Unincorporated towns in Nevada, unincorporated town and census-designated place (CDP) in Clark County, Nevada, United States, adjacent to the city of Las Vegas. It was formed on December 8, 1950. Its population was 191,238 at the ...

* Carolina Actors Studio Theatre in Charlotte, North Carolina * Elevation Church in Charlotte, North Carolina * O'Reilly Theater in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania *Kleberg Stage at the Zach Theatre in Austin, Texas * Blackfriars Playhouse at the

American Shakespeare Center The American Shakespeare Center (ASC) is a Regional theater in the United States, regional theatre company located in Staunton, Virginia, Staunton, Virginia, that focuses on the plays of William Shakespeare; his contemporaries Ben Jonson, Beaumo ...

in Staunton, Virginia *Playhouse at the Overture Center for the Arts in Madison, Wisconsin * American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Wisconsin * Barksdale Theatre at the Shops at Willow Lawn in Richmond, Virginia * Theatre Suburbia in Houston, Texas * Berkeley Repertory Theatre in Berkeley, California

Europe

Germany

Waldbühne The Waldbühne (''Woodland Stage'' or ''Forest Stage'') is an amphitheatre at Olympiapark Berlin in Berlin, Germany. It was designed by German architect Werner March in emulation of a Greek theatre and built between 1934 and 1936 as the Dietrich ...

("Forest Stage"), Berlin

Greece

*Numerous Greek theatres, such as the one in

Epidaurus Epidaurus () was a small city (''polis'') in ancient Greece, on the Argolid Peninsula at the Saronic Gulf. Two modern towns bear the name Epidavros: ''Palaia Epidavros'' and ''Nea Epidavros''. Since 2010 they belong to the new municipality of Epi ...

United Kingdom

* Brighton Open Air Theatre, Brighton * Questors Theatre, Ealing * Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England * Gulbenkian Theatre in Canterbury, England *

in London, England. All other Elizabethan theatres were also in the same style. *Olivier Theatre in the National Theatre, London * Everyman Theatre in Liverpool, England * Chichester Festival Theatre. Notable for the fact that the stage is hexagonal, and is surrounded by the audience on three sides. * Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon, England * Courtyard Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon, England *Quarry Theatre at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds * Riverside Theatre in Coleraine, Northern Ireland

Asia

India

* Prithvi Theatre, Mumbai * Bharat Bhavan, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh * Ranga Shankara, Bangalore

Singapore

*Ngee Ann Kongsi Theatre, located at W!LD RICE Funan

Oceania

Australia

*York Theatre, part of the Seymour Centre, Sydney *Roundhouse Theatre, part of WAAPA, Perth

References

External links

* *
''Mystère'' theatre diagram
Diagram of

Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil (, ; ) is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, Montreal, Saint-Michel, Montreal, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Jun ...

's '' Mystère'' theatre
Thrust stage diagram
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thrust Stage Parts of a theatre