Introduction to Technical Theater

A Field Trip In A Box

Intro to Technical Theater takes your students on a virtual tour of different stage facilities and lets them meet working professionals, who explain what it is they do, and how they collaborate with other professionals to get their shows on the boards. In today's budget-crunched educational world, it is often too costly to take students on field trips to see different types of facilities and meet people "in the business." Intro to Technical Theater takes your students through a variety of settings....from state-of-the-art theaters to school gymnasiums.

Theater Hierarchy

What is the difference between a producer and a director? A tech director and a stage manager? A set prop and a hand prop? Intro to Technical Theater brings the producer of the St. Louis Shakespeare Festival into your classroom to talk about the duties of a producer. An actor/director with 16 years of Broadway, regional and international credits talks to your students about what a director does. Intro to Technical Theater explains and shows what each person and crew in a theatrical production is responsible for.

Types Of Stages

Intro to Technical Theater takes your students to four very different types of performance spaces. The first three, Proscenium, Thrust, and Arena, are professional, state of the art facilities that share the space with university programs. The fourth is a Thrust stage in a school gym. Your students will get a realistic idea of the different kinds of facilities in which people put on plays.

Take A Backstage Tour

Walk through a professional theater that is home to national and international theater, music, and dance companies. Start in the lobby and walk through the auditorium, stopping at the control booth and sound mix position. Go above the auditorium to see the view from the foh lighting positions. Ride the orchestra pit lift up to stage level and look at all the draperies, electrics, the wing area, the pin rail, and the stage manager's desk. Go behind the stage into the shops, stop at the callboard, and continue into the green room and dressing rooms.

Features & Benefits

You may download an Information Sheet for this title in Adobe® Acrobat format.

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