Inveterate theater-goers have long looked after excellent places in each theater. But what about those who rarely go there or even going there for the first time?
First, you need to decide which theater you are going to. If opera or built before the 20th century, then the presented classification is for you. If in a more modern place, then choose either the "director's" eighth row, or any place at all: it will be both seen and heard. With the exception of "blind spots", they are in all theaters, and each has its own.
Parterre
You should not look dreamily at the front rows, usually expensive, but meaningless. During the ballet, you will clearly hear the stamping of the feet of "fragile" ballerinas, during the opera, the head of the conductor will loom in front of your nose. In a dramatic production, there is still an option to nest in the forefront, but this is not always useful, especially if the actors use objects “flying” in passions, water, dust, smoke ...
There is another problem with the stalls of historical theaters - they are flat. Rows do not rise above each other. So, if you are not tall, you will have to look into the cracks between the heads. Then choose at least the first row in the horizontal aisle (if any).
Amphitheater (benoir)
The amphitheater is located just above the stalls. And these are the most precious places, although they can easily be cheaper than the stalls. The review is excellent, the audibility is excellent.
Mezzanine
The mezzanine is above the amphitheater. Translated from French means "beautiful floor". Often they are really quite nice. You can see it perfectly, hear it even better, so it's pointless to expect low prices from these places.
lodges
Lodges are among the most expensive theatrical pleasures. Their charm is in detachment from the crowd. A separate entrance to a separate room - yes, it's almost a chamber hall! But behind the high price and pathos, there are also inconveniences.
You have to sit in half a turn, but even this will not save you sometimes from the “cut off” edge of the stage, which can only be seen by falling down. And the farther you are from the royal box, the more limited your view. And that's if you're in the front row. If you have seats in the second, then seeing at least something is a matter of exceptional luck.
Balcony
The balcony is located at the very top, above all the tiers of lodges. High but fun. The little people running around the puppet stage are a really funny sight. Therefore, if it is important for you to see the drama, to feel it, do not take a seat on the balcony, even though they are the cheapest. But for operas and concerts - just right. The sound there is great! Listening to Chopin while looking at the paintings and stucco on the ceiling is quite an inspiring process.
And most importantly - do not forget about the binoculars. If fate gave you a ticket to a balcony or high tiers, then they will save you from injustice!
They say that the theater begins with a hanger, but in fact it begins with the purchase of tickets. The main question is which places to choose? There are stalls, boxes, mezzanine... In some theaters there are so-called uncomfortable places - this is where nothing is seen and little is heard. At the same time, such inconvenience is not always warned in advance.
Some places are too far away, from others - the edge of the stage is not visible. To choose the best seats, first look at the scheme of the theater hall.
Parterres are places in the auditorium area that are closest to the stage. The amphitheater is the space immediately behind the stalls. Usually the amphitheater area is just above the stalls. The mezzanine seats are even higher. At the very top is a balcony. On both sides of the parterre there are lodges - these are small spaces with a separate entrance.
By tradition, the seats in the box are considered the most prestigious - earlier only wealthy visitors could sit there. Each box has a separate entrance, and besides this, you can not only watch the performance, but also show yourself. More than a hundred years ago, representatives of high society came to the theater for this very reason. Officers sat in the stalls, and titled persons in separate boxes. Leo Tolstoy described this in Anna Karenina.
Nowadays, businessman Edward Lewis Richard Gere introduces the beauty Vivienne, performed by Julia Roberts, to the opera by buying tickets in the box. But in fact, the places there are some of the most uncomfortable. The stage is not fully visible, and the performance has to be viewed half-turned.
Today, to the question “What are the best places in the theater?” almost everyone will answer "in the stalls." Parterre seats are traditionally considered the best, but they are also the most expensive. At the same time, almost every theater has a so-called "sound pit" - it is somewhere between 5 and 10 rows. There, the sound literally flies over the viewer. This is especially important if you are going to the opera.
Famous film example: Bruce Willis' character Corwin Dallas in The Fifth Element is watching an opera from the front row. Many will not advise you to take tickets to the first rows of the stalls. It only seems from afar that the artists are fluttering around the stage like butterflies, but in the front row you will hear all the extraneous noises. In addition, you will have to watch the action with your head up, while you will still see the back of the conductor's head in front of you.
Choose seats in the middle of the hall or a little further. There, tickets are cheaper than in the front rows, and the view is better. Real theater-goers, in addition to the stalls, often choose the first rows of the mezzanine.
In general, the most prestigious and expensive theater seats do not mean the best. Sometimes on the balcony you can see and hear everything without interference.
It does not hurt for every cultured person to know the names of places in the theater, especially if he periodically attends theatrical performances. But not everyone can boast of such knowledge. Below we will analyze in detail all the places and how they differ from each other.
Hall layout
If you are one of the people who do not quite understand the names of places in the theater, then the layout of the hall will definitely help you clarify some points.
There are not many varieties of seats in the hall, these include:
- Parterre ("on the ground"). These places are located near the center. After the emergence of theaters, the stalls were mostly standing places, but now they are gone, and any stalls are equipped with a large number of seats.
- Balcony. Seating is located above the amphitheater at different levels. As before, these places are valued, because. they offer a good view of the stage.
- Lodge. It is located, like the balcony, on the upper tiers, located opposite the stage. The view is also very good, but ticket prices are higher.
- Gallery. Located on the balcony on the highest tier. It does not have the most convenient location, and ticket prices are usually lower.
- Benoir. Lodges, which are located at stage level, on the sides of the stalls. Previously, the audience, sitting in the benoir, remained invisible to the rest of the people in the theater.
- Mezzanine. They are located above the benoir and the amphitheater. These places are considered the most convenient, but their prices are very high, so not everyone can afford to buy a ticket there.
- Amphitheater. It is located above the stalls on both sides. The seats are arranged in tiers, which makes them more comfortable.
The layout of the hall seats in the theater is presented below.
Choosing a seat in the theater
The layout of the theater hall will help in choosing a good place.
If you plan to visit the theater and enjoy what is happening on stage, then you should take a responsible approach to choosing a place. In order to fully see the entire theatrical performance, and not look at what is happening on the stage through the people sitting in front, and in order to get the maximum pleasure from visiting the theater, we recommend choosing a seat on the balcony, mezzanine or on the middle rows of the stalls opposite the stage. These places will not only have an excellent view of the stage, but also good acoustics.
The scheme of the hall is quite simple and it will not be difficult to remember it, but it may come in handy in the future.
THEATER PARTERRE(French parterre, from par - to and terre - earth), the lower floor of the auditorium with seats for the public in the space from the stage or from the orchestra pit to the opposite wall or to the amphitheater. As a rule, the level of the stalls is 1–1.1 m below the stage floor, and the same amount above the floor of the orchestra pit.
The bench for senators in the ancient Roman theater became the prototype, the early form of the parterre.
In the modern sense of the word, the parterre appeared in the theater at the beginning of the 17th century, along with the emergence of a fundamentally new, so-called. "rank" or "tiered" type of theatrical building. The historical transformation of the arrangement of the stalls reflected the development of social trends and relationships.
During the Middle Ages, the theater experienced a time of persecution, and, accordingly, new theatrical buildings were not built. At that time, only church performances were allowed. In the early period (9th-12th centuries), the liturgical drama was played out inside churches, later (12th-13th centuries), to increase the number of spectators, it was transferred to the porch. The audience was located along an extremely long stage area. Performances of mysteries and morality (14-16 centuries), due to the ever-increasing number of spectators, were carried out in blocked squares and streets. Scaffolding of a farce type was erected; wealthier citizens had the opportunity to watch the performances from the balconies and from the windows of the surrounding houses, the lower classes were located on the ground.
The art of constructing theatrical buildings experienced its second birth during the early Renaissance in Italy. When developing the projects of the first rank theaters, the seats in front of the stage, i.e., the stalls, were traditionally intended for the lower class. Therefore, the stalls had no seats, the audience here watched the performances standing.
For the first time, seats in the stalls appeared in closed private aristocratic theaters in England (beginning of the 17th century), in contrast to the public English theaters of that time, where the audience traditionally stood in the stalls. However, here the parterre seats for noble visitors were not stationary; as needed, stools were placed in the parterre.
The first stationary chairs in the stalls were designed by the architect C. Ledoux during the construction of the theater in Besançon (completion of construction in 1784). This innovation was to some extent inspired by the democratic ideas of the French Revolution. The idea of equality manifested itself in this case in the fact that the spectators watching the performance "from below" should be provided with the same amenities as the spectators who were accommodated in the boxes.
In the modern parterre, seats for spectators are placed parallel to the ramp or the barrier of the orchestra and are separated by longitudinal and transverse passages leading to the exits from the hall. For the sake of better visibility, the level of the floor of the auditorium usually rises from the front rows of the stalls to the back. The most “advantageous” spectator seats, in terms of acoustics, maximum visibility and integrity of the perception of the visual image of the performance, are considered to be the central seats of the seventh row of the stalls.
Tatyana Shabalina
Auditorium
Amphitheater(translated from Greek - "on both sides") - this is the name of the places that rise behind the stalls with ledges. They are located in a semicircle.
Balcony- seats in the auditorium located in the amphitheater in different tiers (1st tier, 2nd tier...).
Mezzanine(translated from French - "beautiful", "beautiful") - the first tier of the auditorium, located in a semicircle above the benoir and the amphitheater. In ancient theatrical buildings in the center of the mezzanine was the so-called "royal box". These are the most comfortable seats in the theater. The performance did not start until the king arrived, even if he was an hour late. When he appeared, everyone applauded him, at his sign the lights were turned off and the performance began. If the king laughed, then most of the spectators laughed, if he yawned, then boredom attacked the spectators. But the worst thing for the actors was if His Majesty got up and left during the action. It meant complete failure.
Benoir(translated from French - "bath") - lodges located on both sides of the stalls at stage level and partitioned off from each other. The history of the origin of the benoir is quite amusing. Once in France, which was a trendsetter in Europe, a privileged noble audience was on stage during the action, which, of course, greatly interfered with the actors. But in the 18th century it was forbidden. Then, in order to separate the aristocratic spectators from the rest of the public, benoir lodges were invented. In those days, these lodges were even covered with special nets that allowed those who were there to remain invisible.
Gallery- the highest balcony of the auditorium, on which there are not very comfortable, but the cheapest seats. Previously, the gallery was called "rayok".
Parterre(translated from French - "on the ground") - the lower part of the auditorium, located on the plane in front of the stage and closest to it.
Foyer- part of the theater building intended for spectators. In the foyer, the audience awaits the beginning of the performance, and during the intermission, they exchange impressions. The foyer is decorated with stands telling about the history of the theater, as well as portraits of actors working there.
.jpg)
Scene 
Proscenium- the front part of the stage area between the curtain and the ramp.
Scenery(translated from French - "to decorate") - the decoration of the stage, recreating the environment in which the performance takes place.
Backdrop- a large piece of fabric or other material that is hung on the part of the stage farthest from the audience and usually depicts a general background for the scenery.
A curtain- several connected panels that close the stage from the audience. This is the threshold beyond which the theatrical fairy tale begins.
Grids- grating for the installation of stage mechanisms and suspension of scenery. If you, sitting in the hall, see how some decorations “take off” and disappear and others fall, know that they are all mounted on grates.
backstage- flat parts of theatrical scenery, plain or painted panels, which are arranged in pairs on the sides of the stage, parallel or at an angle to the ramp.
Tablet(translated from French - "board") - the floor of the stage. The stage tablet consists of separate wooden boards made of high quality pine planks, which fit snugly together, but can be taken out if necessary. The tablet must be very durable, because there are heavy decorations on it, a lot of people.
Turntable- part of the stage area, located in the center and able to rotate. The rotation of the turntable creates the illusion of continuous stage action. The circle is also an invoice, smaller in size than the main one. The turntable was invented in Japan in the 18th century and was equipped with the famous Japanese kabuki theater.
Ramp- a lighting device placed on the proscenium along its front edge. The stage lights illuminate the stage, the performers and the sets from the front and bottom. The lighting equipment of the ramp is usually hidden from the public by a low ledge.
Soffit(translated from Italian - "ceiling") - theatrical lighting equipment designed to illuminate the stage from the front and from above. Spotlights can create the impression of a bright sunny morning or dusk, a dark underground or a moonlit night.
Prompter(translated from French - "to blow, blow"). In the old days, this position was one of the most important in the theater. The prompter prompted the artists the text from a specially equipped booth, which was located on the stage. In those days, performances were produced very quickly, artists from different cities often gathered in one theater, the plays were wordy and the actors did not have time to learn the text. Therefore, the performances, as a rule, went "under the prompter."
Scene(translated from Greek - "tent") - a platform on which a theatrical performance takes place. The very first stage in Europe was in Ancient Greece and was a round platform - it was called "orchestra". In the 16th century in England, performances were played in the courtyards of hotels with internal galleries, to which a platform was attached. Gradually, over a long period of time, the scene took on the shape that it has now. There are small scenes where the action takes place in the center, and the audience sits around.
Pure change- change or rearrangement of scenery, which is done in front of the audience, usually in complete darkness in a few seconds. requires clear and coordinated actions of all technical personnel.
