The proscenium curtain, also known as the front curtain, act curtain or grand drape, is the main curtain most downstage (closest to the audience). It typically hides the playing area and main set during the "curtain warmer," when the house is being seated before the start of the show. At the start of the show, or after the overture if it's a musical production, the grand drape opens, revealing the world the audience will be witnessing for the show's duration. There are several ways in which the proscenium curtain opens, and each has a specific term. A traveling curtain consists of two panels meeting downstage center. The panels open horizontally into the stage left and stage right wings. These curtains are used when fly space is lacking for a raised curtain or when it makes sense visually. A fly curtain (or a raised curtain) opens vertically, lifting up into the fly space above. It is often sewn from very elegant or eye-catching fabric. A contour curtain lifts vertically like a fly curtain, but the fabric gathers vertically, so no fly space is needed. These curtains are often made of lightweight fabric. A tableau curtain is a type of traveling curtain that opens horizontally in a draping motion. This is achieved through threads and rings sewn into the fabric diagonally.
A stage backdrop is a large, flat piece of muslin on which scenery may be painted, projected or placed digitally. It is flat and has a large strip of webbing running through it for strength. A pipe runs through a pocket at the bottom hem to weight the drop down, and grommets with rope ties run along the top for fastening in place.
Since a proscenium's size cannot be changed, theaters must use curtains when necessary to create the illusion of a smaller proscenium. Teasers are horizontal masking curtains hung from the top of the proscenium, right behind the grand drape. They are as long as required to decrease the proscenium height for the scene or entire production. Torms are long, narrower curtains hung stage right and left, directly upstage of the proscenium. They are often hung alongside the teaser and attached to what is called a traveller pipe. Many of these pipes swivel so the torms can be easily moved to open up the proscenium again, or turned around to show different curtain fabric. Both these curtains are commonly sewn with black velour or other heavy, black cloth.
These curtains are very similar to teasers and torms. The borders run horizontally, across the top and behind the proscenium, and the borders hang vertically, stage right and left behind the proscenium. The large difference is that legs and borders are used upstage of the teasers and torms, and they are usually constructed of standard drapery material rather than heavy, black velour.
This curtain can act as a type of "invisible curtain." When it is lit from the front, it appears matte or opaque. However, when objects or actors behind it are lit, the scrim appears see-through. This is due to the special fabric used to construct it. A scrim is also sewn with a rectangular sharks-tooth weave, making it dense enough to be dyed and still appear transparent with proper backlighting.
This is the largest piece of scenery in a typical theatre. It runs along the back of the stage, and scenes are often painted across it. It is commonly referred to as a "cyc." It can come in hard, stiff material or flexible fabric that is easier to move.