History
Prompt book is originally used by a prompter to much the same effect that they are today used by deputy stage managers. During the period spanning from the mid 17th through the early 19th centuries, rehearsal periods were generally very short by modern standards: a period of 1–2 weeks for three hours a day was common. Performances were likewise unpolished by modern standards, even when taking into account the theatrical conventions of the time, and so it was necessary to have a prompter standing by to assist actors with lines, blocking, and business. All of which the prompter would need to have recorded in their book.
In practice, prompters were also responsible for copying sides of the script for the company's actors, giving cues for music and scene shifts, securing licenses for plays, and assessing fines for actors who failed to attend rehearsals (in keeping with the duties of a modern stage manager). The records that prompters kept in their books are some of the most valuable resources available to modern scholars for understanding historical theatrical practice in the period.
As audience expectations for spectacle evolved in the 19th century, prompt books were published to describe the techniques involved in constructing complex scenery and special effects. These prompt books more closely resemble instructional works on how to create scenery, as they often included recommendations for simplification for less well-equipped theatres, than they do a modern prompt book.
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