Theatre Glossary
Whether you're stepping on stage for the first time or picking up a script to read, here's a guide to the terms you'll encounter in the world of theatre.
35 terms in Dramatic Structure
Protagonist
The central character of a play around whom the main action revolves. From the Greek "first actor" (protagonistes), the protagonist drives the story forward and is typically the character the audience follows most closely. The protagonist is not necessarily heroic—they can be morally complex, flawed, or even villainous—but they are the primary lens through which the story is experienced.
Dramatic StructureRising Action
The series of events in a play that build tension and develop conflict, leading toward the climax. Rising action follows the exposition (setup) and encompasses the complications, obstacles, and escalating stakes that drive the story forward. In a well-structured play, the rising action creates a sense of inevitability—each event makes the climax feel both surprising and unavoidable.
Dramatic StructureScene
A subdivision of an act in a play, typically defined by a change in time, location, or the entrance/exit of characters. Scenes are the basic building blocks of dramatic structure. In screenplay terminology, each change of location constitutes a new scene, but theatrical scenes are often longer and more fluid.
Dramatic StructureScript
The written text of a play, containing dialogue, stage directions, and other information needed for production. Also called the "text" or "playtext." Scripts are both literary works and practical blueprints for performance. Published acting editions (from publishers like Samuel French or Nick Hern Books) include production notes and stage directions from notable productions.
Dramatic StructureStage Directions
Written instructions in a script indicating movement, actions, expression, setting, lighting, sound, or other elements of production. Stage directions are typically printed in italics and set apart from dialogue. Some playwrights write minimal stage directions (Harold Pinter), while others provide extensive, literary descriptions (Tennessee Williams, Eugene O'Neill). Actors and directors may choose to interpret rather than follow directions literally.
Dramatic StructureStichomythia
A dramatic technique in which two characters exchange single alternating lines of dialogue in rapid succession, creating a verbal duel effect. Originating in Greek tragedy, stichomythia conveys heightened emotion, escalating conflict, or intense debate. The technique appears throughout Shakespeare and continues in modern drama whenever playwrights want dialogue to feel like a volley of verbal blows.
Dramatic StructureStock Character
A recognisable character type that recurs across many plays and dramatic traditions—the wise fool, the scheming villain, the overbearing parent, the star-crossed lovers. Stock characters draw on shared cultural expectations, allowing audiences to understand a character's role quickly. While they can become stereotypes if handled lazily, skilled playwrights subvert or deepen stock characters to create something fresh.
Dramatic StructureSubplot
A secondary storyline that runs alongside the main plot of a play, often involving supporting characters. Subplots can mirror, contrast, or comment on the main action, adding thematic depth and dramatic variety. Shakespeare frequently used subplots—the Gloucester plot in King Lear parallels Lear's own story of parental blindness. Well-crafted subplots enrich the main story rather than distracting from it.
Dramatic StructureSuspension of Disbelief
The audience's willingness to accept the conventions and artifice of a theatrical performance as real for the duration of the show. Coined by poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge in 1817, the concept describes the implicit agreement between performers and audience: we know this is a stage and those are actors, but we choose to believe in the story. Theatre depends on this shared act of imagination.
Dramatic StructureTableau
A moment in performance where all action freezes and the actors hold their positions, creating a still, picture-like image on stage. Tableaux (plural) can be used for dramatic emphasis, transitions, or to begin and end scenes. The technique, also called "tableau vivant" (living picture), has been used in theatre since the 18th century and remains a powerful staging tool.
Dramatic StructureVerse and Prose
In classical drama, particularly Shakespeare, the distinction between lines written in verse (structured poetic metre, usually iambic pentameter) and prose (ordinary, unmetred speech). Shakespeare used verse for nobility, formal occasions, and heightened emotion, and prose for common characters, comedy, and madness. Understanding when and why a playwright shifts between verse and prose reveals character, status, and emotional state.
Dramatic Structure