Theater (structure)

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A theater, or playhouse, is a structure where theatrical works, performing arts, and musical concerts are presented. The theater building serves to define the performance and audience spaces. The facility usually is organized to provide support areas for performers, the technical crew and the audience members, as well as the stage where the performance takes place.

There are as many types of theaters as there are types of performance. Theaters may be built specifically for certain types of productions, they may serve for more general performance needs or they may be adapted or converted for use as a theater. They may range from open-air amphitheaters to ornate, cathedral-like structures to simple, undecorated rooms or black box theaters. A thrust stage as well as an arena stage are just a few more examples of the multitude of stages where plays can occur. A theatre used for opera performances is called an opera house. A theater is not required for performance (as in environmental theater or street theater), this article is about structures used specifically for performance. Some theaters may have a fixed acting area (in most theaters this is known as the stage), while some theaters, such as black box theaters have movable seating allowing the production to create a performance area suitable for the production.