Plain-English theatre, stage-management and production terms — for teachers, students and crew putting on a school show. (Tap a heading group; everything's on one page so you can Ctrl/⌘-F to find a term.)
Upstage / Downstage — Away from the audience (upstage) / towards the audience (downstage). From the days of raked stages that sloped up at the back.
Stage Left / Stage Right — Always from the performer's point of view facing the audience — so Stage Left is the audience's right.
Prompt Side (PS) / Opposite Prompt (OP) — PS is the side the stage manager "calls" the show from (usually Stage Left in Australia); OP is the other side.
Proscenium — The "picture frame" arch separating the stage from the audience. Its opening width & height set how much the audience can see.
Apron / Forestage — The part of the stage in front of the proscenium / house curtain.
Wings — The offstage spaces left and right where performers wait and scenery is stored out of sight.
Crossover — A path (often behind the backdrop) letting performers get from one side to the other unseen.
Fly system / grid — Overhead bars (battens/lines) that scenery, lighting and curtains hang from and can be "flown" in and out.
Cyclorama (cyc) — The large rear curtain/wall, often lit for sky/colour effects.
Stage Manager (SM) — Runs the show: "calls" the cues, keeps the production book, coordinates cast and crew on the night.
Assistant Stage Manager (ASM) — Works backstage on deck — props, scene changes, cueing performers on.
LX (Lighting) / SD or SND (Sound) — The lighting and sound departments/operators.
FOH (Front of House) — Everything on the audience side: ushers, box office, and the FOH lighting/sound positions.
MD (Musical Director) — Leads the music/band and singers.
Stagehand / Mechanist (MX) — Crew who move scenery and set pieces.
Call — A scheduled time someone must be somewhere ("beginners' call", "half-hour call"). Also the SM's spoken cues.
Call sheet — The daily schedule: who's needed, when and where (calls, soundcheck, hair/makeup, dress, clear).
Standby (STBY) — "Get ready" — the SM warns a department a cue is coming.
GO — The SM's command to execute a cue ("LX 12… GO").
Cue — A trigger for an action — a light change, sound, fly move or scene shift — numbered in the book.
Blackout (BO) — All stage lights off, usually to mask a scene change or end a scene.
Bump-in / Bump-out (Get-in / Get-out) — Loading the show into the venue / striking it out afterward.
Strike — Dismantling and clearing the set/show.
Tech run / Dress run — The technical rehearsal (cues) / the full rehearsal in costume and make-up.
Radio mic / Radio pack — A wireless microphone worn by a performer (head-worn or lapel) with a beltpack transmitter.
Mic plot — The allocation of which performer wears which radio-mic number — so the sound operator knows who's who. (Built in EasySM → Cast.)
Mic mark-up — Marking in the script which mics are "on" and "off" line-by-line, so the sound op opens/closes the right channels live.
Foldback / Monitors — Speakers facing the performers so they can hear themselves and the band.
Gel — A coloured filter placed in front of a light.
Gobo — A cut-out template that projects a pattern (leaves, windows, stars) through a light.
Followspot — A manually-operated spotlight that "follows" a performer.
Wash / Special — A broad even light over an area (wash) / a light focused on one spot or person (special).
The Book / Prompt copy — The SM's master script with all cues, blocking and warnings marked — the show's single source of truth.
Blocking — The planned moves and positions of performers on stage.
Risk assessment / SWMS — The safety document identifying hazards (working at height, rigging, electrics) and how they're controlled. (See EasyRisk.)
Bump number / Tub — How props/costume/set are stored and labelled for transport and prep. (See EasyInventory.)