Staging configurations and theatrical conventions, including proscenium arch, thrust, traverse, in the round and promenade staging, and how each affects sightlines, entrances, proxemics and the actor-audience relationship.

What this dot point is asking

AQA wants you to know the main ways a performance space can be configured and to explain how each choice changes sightlines, entrances and exits, proxemics and the relationship between the actors and the audience. You apply this directly in Section B when you justify a staging choice for your set play, and it informs your Section C analysis of a live production.

The main staging configurations

Each configuration places the audience differently and so creates a different relationship with the performers.

• Proscenium arch. Audience faces the stage from one side through a "picture frame". Strong for illusion, painted scenery, flown pieces and a sustained fourth wall, but the most distant relationship and a clear separation of fiction and audience.
• Thrust. The stage projects into the audience on three sides, combining the intimacy of being surrounded with the scenic possibilities of an upstage wall; entrances can come through vomitories beneath the seating.
• Traverse. Audience sits on two facing banks with the action between them, creating a corridor or catwalk that heightens confrontation and forces spectators to watch each other across the conflict.
• In the round. Audience surrounds the stage on all sides, the most intimate and exposed form, demanding constant movement so no section is masked and a low, furniture-based set.
• Promenade. The audience stands and moves between playing areas, immersed in the event and sometimes part of it, dissolving the usual safe distance.

How configuration shapes meaning

The configuration is itself a directorial choice. In the round and promenade create immersion and intimacy, implicating the audience in the action; proscenium arch supports spectacle, illusion and a clear separation between the fictional world and the audience; thrust and traverse sit between, drawing the audience close while keeping a defined playing space.

Conventions that depend on configuration

Sightlines must be managed so key action is not masked, which is hardest in the round and thrust, where blocking must keep turning. Entrances and exits change with the form: an upstage door in proscenium, vomitories in thrust and round, the ends of the corridor in traverse, and moving playing areas in promenade. Set height and scenery are constrained by the audience position: only proscenium and to a degree thrust allow tall or flown scenery, while in the round demands a low set.

Writing about staging in the exam

When you justify a configuration, explain the effect on the audience, not just the layout. Say why thrust suits intimacy with scenic depth, or why traverse heightens conflict, always with reference to a specific moment in your set play and the response you want from the audience.