Stage Directions (s.d) allow directors and actors to know where to stand for stage business to occur. The stage is broken into 9 parts labelled below so that actors know exactly where to stand and or where the action takes place. USL for example means upstage left from the actor’s point of view not the audiences.
Areas of the Stage
- USR: Upstage Right
- USC: Upstage Center
- USL: Upstage Left
- CR: Center Right
- C: Center
- CL: Center Right
- DSR: Downstage Right
- DSC: Downstage Center
- DSL: Downstage Left
S.d are guidelines in a play which aid the development of all areas of the production, from the Lighting and Sound Technicians, the Backstage Crew to the Stage Manager. The Costume and Artistic Design team need to know where actors will be standing on stage to best show their work. These people read the script and often sit in with rehearsals to check on s.d and other aspects of the production.
S.d often describes the setting of the scene. For example, Layla, walks out of the room, turns back and runs out.
They can also be embedded within a scene to aid the subtext or what is happening between the lines. (Susan steps towards Jerome, she grabs his face in her hand and laughs sarcastically).
If you are wanting an infographic on the different parts of the stage, please download for free here.
Here is a slideshow for free which labels the different areas of the stage. Please make a copy and you may use this for students or actors.
Check out my other post on the different types of stages in theatres.
Directors Ignore Playwrights S.D.
Some plays are very descriptive and others leave everything up to the imagination of the director. They may chop and change the s.d as they go to best suit the style of the production or play. Implementing the written s.d exactly as written, might not fit with the current production.
Many playwrights can be finicky when it comes to their play. They often have an urge to tell the director how to move actors according to their ideals. It can be frustrating for a playwright, especially if the director is going in a completely different artistic direction.
Many productions refuse to have the writer in the same room in fear that they will want to take over the direction themselves. Directors do not always want the playwright there during rehearsals for this reason.
Some actors prefer having s.d written in detail in the script and others would rather it be an open book and leave it up to the director instead. Many actors will obtain a script or ‘sides’ and choose to cross out all instructions within. Some actors will go with the flow and cross out and change s.d during the rehearsals process.
Most S.D Were Written for the First Showing
Often playwrights write for a specific theater company and or theatre. They write s.d which are written for the very first production of the play, with consideration of the cast, as well as the size of the audience/stage and the overall artistic design.
The original s.d don’t often suit subsequent productions of the play and need to be adapted in a new artistic direction. Some scripts are too prescriptive and don’t work well with a newer production.
Actors need to recognise that because s.d in a play instructs an actor to perform a particular action, doesn’t mean to say that the current production requires the exact same action. An adaption is often needed instead. Flexibility is needed by actors and directors alike.
Sometimes guidelines such as these give the actor a starting point from which to work from. But they aren’t compulsory to follow.
Why It’s important For Actors To Read the Whole Play
Actors are strongly encouraged to read the whole play more than once to get a clear idea of elements of the play, including the intricacies of their character. The more the actors know about the plot, setting, and the characters of the play the better.
It also bodes well for actors to know what the playwright envisaged for their character, even if the director prefers to take them in a different direction. It is okay to know what other ideas are out there, but always go with the ideals of the director.
If you want to learning more about theatre etiquette check out this link on my post. And also check my link with theatre etiquette for actors.
What Does Upstaging Mean?
Upstaging is sometimes seen as a negative action where an actor draws attention to themselves at the expense of another actor. This sometimes happens. However, a director can use upstaging as a focal point in the play.
When Upstaging is purposeful, an actor will stand ‘upstage,’ while another actor is looks Upstage towards them from a Downstage or Mid stage point of view. The importance is given to the US actor because the audience focal point is on them.
In A Nutshell
You need to know where each part of the stage is and where the acting business occurs. Otherwise you risk looking like you don’t know what you are doing.
Written s.d in the script aren’t always prescriptive for follow up productions, but are indicative of where the playwright ideals as they were writing the play.
For actors to do their best, they need to do their homework and research all elements of the play and read the whole play over again.
Budding Playwrights
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