What is up stage and down stage?

Question

Is up stage closest to audiance and down stage is the back?

Answer 1

It's the other way around. Down stage is the area of the stage closest to the audience, while upstage is at the back.

Answer 2

Up stage is AWAY from the audience and downstage is CLOSER to the audience.

Answer 3

If this is an issue of confusion while you're on stage, being directed, you might also keep in mind that in theater the opposites are the case.

   Similar would be stage left and right, opposite of how you stand on stage facing an audience, your left hand is stage right.

Answer 4

upstage is in the back and downstage is near the audience

Answer 5

On a stage, stae left is to the actors' left, stage right is to the actors' right, upstage is towards the back of the stage and downstage is towards the audieance/front of the stage.

Why is this? Originally theatre were made on an angle. The audiences would sit flat while the stage was angled down facing them. Because of this, "upstage" would literally mean up, more towards the top because of this angle. "downstage" was the lowest point on the stage.

Answer 6

downstage

–adverb 1. at or toward the front of the stage.  

–adjective 2. of or pertaining to the front of the stage.  

–noun 3. the front half of the stage.

Upstage

adverb 1. on or toward the back of the stage.  

–adjective 2. of, pertaining to, or located at the back of the stage.  

3. haughtily aloof; supercilious.  

–verb (used with object) 4. to overshadow (another performer) by moving upstage and forcing the performer to turn away from the audience.  

5. to outdo professionally, socially, etc.  

6. to behave snobbishly toward.  

–noun 7. the rear half of the stage.  

8. any stage position to the rear of another.