Theater drapes and stage curtains are large pieces of cloth that are designed to mask backstage areas of a theater from spectators. They are designed for a variety of specific purposes and come in several types; many are made from black or other dark colored, light-absorbing material, and heavyweight velour is the current industry standard for these. Theater drapes represent a portion of any production's soft goods, a category which includes any cloth-based element of the stage or scenery (though not including cloth theater costumes or wardrobe).
Proscenium stages use a greater variety of drapes than arena or thrust stages. In proscenium theaters, drapes are typically suspended from battens that are controlled by a fly system (i.e., they are "flown", in theater terminology). When a drape is flown, the task of adjusting its height for best masking effect is simplified and, in the case of a drape that must be moved during a performance, this enables the drape to be quickly raised above the proscenium arch—thus positioning it out of view of spectators—or lowered to any arbitrary height above the stage, as required.
Famous quotes containing the words theater, stage and/or curtains:
“Since people no longer attend church, theater remains as the only public service, and literature as the only private devotion.”
—Franz Grillparzer (1791–1872)
“Toddlerhood resembles adolescence because of the rapidity of physical growth and because of the impulse to break loose of parental boundaries. At both ages, the struggle for independence exists hand in hand with the often hidden wish to be contained and protected while striving to move forward in the world. How parents and toddlers negotiate their differences sets the stage for their ability to remain partners during childhood and through the rebellions of the teenage years.”
—Alicia F. Lieberman (20th century)
“The fringèd curtains of thine eye advance,
And say what thou seest yond.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)