Proscenium

proscenium

In a theatre, the frame or arch separating the stage from the auditorium, through which the action of a play is viewed. In ancient Greek theatres, the proskenion was an area in front of the skene that eventually functioned as the stage. The first permanent proscenium in the modern sense was built in 1618 at the Farnese Theatre in Parma. Though the arch contained a stage curtain, its main purpose was to provide a sense of spectacle and illusion; scene changes were carried out in view of the audience. Not until the 18th century was the curtain commonly used to hide scene changes. The proscenium opening was of particular importance to 19th-century realist playwrights, for whom it served as a picture frame or an invisible wall through which the audience experienced the illusion of spying on the characters.

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proscenium

1. the arch or opening separating the stage from the auditorium together with the area immediately in front of the arch

2. (in ancient theatres) the stage itself

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proscenium

1. In the ancient theater, the stage before the scene or back wall.

2. The frame or arch that separates the stage from the seating areas of an auditorium.

3. The proscenium arch.

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Proscenium 

the forward part of the stage, the part in front of the proscenium arch and closest to the audience.

In Roman theaters the proscenium was a platform located in front of the stage and used as the acting space (pulpitum). The modern proscenium evolved in 16th-century Italy; for example, the Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza had a proscenium 25.72 m wide and 6 m deep. The proscenium in 16th-century England was separated from the stage by a movable curtain or by columns. A spacious proscenium thrusting deeply into the auditorium was a basic feature of British theaters in the 17th and 18th centuries.

There are permanent prosceniums in the Leningrad Young People’s Theater and the Royal Shakespeare Theatre (Stratford-on-Avon).