Proscenium arch
The proscenium arch is, in literal terms, the square frame around a raised stage area in traditional theatres. It presents a style of theatre which has persisted since Greek times and has as such as become an almost derrogatory term to many modern dramatists.
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The proscenium arch perpetuates the fourth wall concept within theatre, which implies that the characters performing on stage are doing so in a four-walled environment, with the "wall" facing the audience being invisible.
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Many modern theatres attempt to do away with the fourth wall concept and so the proscenium arch concept has fallen out of favour. They are sometimes designed with the a circular stage areas surrounded by the audience (theatre in the round), thereby doing away completely with the concept. Even so, it is generally considered that the proscenium arch gives the audience the best view as acting on stage can be focused in one direction rather than the actors having to continually move around the stage to give a good view from all sides. It also allows for more complex scenery as blocking the audience's view is much easier to avoid.
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The term proscenium comes from the Greek - "pro" - before, "scena" - scenery, because the proscenium is normally in front of the scenery.
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See also safety curtain
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Latest news on proscenium arch
Oct. 15, 1900: Boston Embraces the Sound of Music
1900: Boston's Symphony Hall, an acoustical marvel in its day and still regarded as one of the world's great concert halls, opens with an inaugural concert by the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Unlike most American concert halls, which tend to favor a wider, fan-shaped configuration, Symphony Hall was built along European lines — deep, narrow and high. The architectural firm of McKim, Mead & White modeled the Boston hall after Leipzig's Gewandhaus (which was destroyed during World War II). But the architects also did something unprecedented: They hired Wallace Clement Sabine, a young assistant physics professor from nearby Harvard, to act as acoustical consultant. For the first time ever, scientifically proven acoustical principles were applied to concert-hall design. On the basis of Sabine's work, the hall was built using brick, steel and plaster, with wooden flooring the only soft material used. The side balconies are narrow to avoid trapping sound, and — to help focus it — the stage walls are banked inward. The architects also carved niches into the walls and topped the hall with a coffered ceiling, which, in acoustical terms, guarantees nearly every seat the optimum aural experience. One interesting quirk: While the proscenium arch is ringed with a number of plaques, only one is inscribed. The intention was to inscribe each plaque with the name of a great composer, but in the end only Beethoven was deemed worthy enough by the directors to be so... Wired.com
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