Making Space for Performance

How do actors make use of the backstage spaces of theatres, and what insights might be gained from observing and examining their activities? To date, few scholars have examined backstage space, with the result that it remains the least documented, least analysed, least theorized area of theatre space (McAuley 2000: 26). Based largely on the observation of actors working on productions in a number of theatres in Sydney, Australia, this article examines the ways in which actors make space to accommodate performance.