Thinking about joining a course but not sure what all the jargon means?
You’re not alone. Words like blocking, beat or subtext can get thrown around like everyone already knows them. But most people don’t — especially when they’re starting out.
Here’s a practical, no-fluff glossary you can bookmark, revisit, and refer to whenever you need to.
Acting terms
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Blocking | Where and how actors move in a scene. Set by the director to support the story. |
| Stage Left / Stage Right | Directions from the actor’s point of view as they face the audience. |
| Upstage / Downstage | Upstage = further from the audience; downstage = closer. Based on sloped stages. |
| Cue | A line, movement or sound that signals it’s your turn to speak or act. |
| Corpsing | Breaking character — usually by laughing mid-scene. |
| Improvisation | Making it up on the spot. Often used for warmups and devising. |
| Projection | Using your voice so everyone can hear — without shouting. |
| Sightlines | What the audience can see. Directors block scenes to keep them clear. |
| Fourth Wall | The invisible wall between the actors and the audience. You “break” it when you speak directly to the audience. |
| Monologue | A solo speech by a character. Often used in auditions or key scenes. |
| Ensemble | A cast working as equals — with no single lead. |
| Cold Reading | Reading a script aloud without prior rehearsal. |
| Table Read | A seated read-through of the script to hear how it sounds. |
| Off-book | Lines fully memorised — no script in hand. |
Scriptwriting terms
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Scene | A section set in one time and place — usually with a shift or purpose. |
| Dialogue | What the characters say. Good dialogue sounds natural, but is carefully written. |
| Monologue | A long speech by one character. Often reveals something important. |
| Stage Directions | Notes on action, tone or setting. Not spoken aloud. |
| Beat | A pause — or a small emotional or thought shift in the scene. |
| Subtext | What’s really going on beneath the words — the unsaid thoughts or feelings. |
| On the nose | Dialogue that’s too direct. Real people rarely say exactly what they feel. |
| Exposition | Backstory or context the audience needs. Best when it feels natural. |
| Draft | A version of your script. First drafts are for ideas; later ones are for polish. |
| Rewrites | Revisions that improve structure, clarity or tone. |
| Script in hand | A reading where actors still use their scripts — common for workshops and sharings. |
| Voiceover (VO) | A voice the audience hears but the characters don’t — often narration or memory. |
| Parenthetical | A small bracketed note on how a line should be delivered (e.g. (sharply)). |
Other useful terms
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Scratch Night | An informal showcase of new or work-in-progress pieces. |
| Devised Theatre | A show created collaboratively by the group, often without a set script. |
| Character Arc | How a character grows or changes throughout a story. |
| Table Work | Script analysis done seated — before staging or blocking begins. |
| Call Time | The time you’re expected to arrive for rehearsal or performance. |
| Sharing | A short, low-pressure performance at the end of a course. Optional but encouraged. |
In summary:
You don’t need to know all these terms before you start — you’ll pick them up as you go. But if something comes up and you’re not sure what it means, come back here.