Lighting Position GlossaryEasyStagecraft Course · Tier 1B · Module 1 (Speak Lighting) · v1.0 · where the lights actually hang in a theatre

Why this matters. When the LD says "we'll need 4 fixtures on the FOH bar and 6 on LX2 with 2 on each boom", you need a mental picture of what they mean. This sheet maps every position name to a place in the theatre. The diagram is a top-down view of a typical 320-seat school theatre + the LD's nomenclature for each spot.

Top-down floor plan · a typical school theatre

FOH bar — front-of-house, throws onto stage

LX1/LX2/LX3 — onstage bars, downstage to upstage

Booms SL/SR — vertical pipes in the wings

Cyc bar — cyclorama wash

Bridge — overhead cat-walk (venue specific)

Yellow dots — individual fixture positions

Position-by-position glossary

Position	Where it is	What it does	Typical fixture count
FOH bar	In the auditorium ceiling, ~6-12m in front of the proscenium, aimed back toward the stage.	Front key light on actors' faces. The most important position — without this, faces are dark.	5-8 fixtures for a typical school theatre.
Bridge / cat-walk	An overhead walkway in the auditorium, between FOH bar + the proscenium. Not all venues have one.	Secondary front key + colour wash from a steeper angle.	3-6 fixtures.
LX1 (first electrics bar onstage)	Just upstage of the proscenium. 5-7m up depending on trim.	Down-light + front-fill from the most downstage onstage position. Often the primary onstage wash.	6-10 fixtures.
LX2 (second electrics bar)	Mid-stage overhead. ~3m upstage of LX1.	Mid-stage wash + specials.	5-8 fixtures.
LX3 (third electrics bar)	Upstage overhead, often just downstage of the cyc.	Back light + colour wash on upstage area.	4-6 fixtures.
Cyc bar / Sky bar	The most upstage bar, just downstage of the cyclorama.	Top-wash for the cyclorama (the sky/sunset/colour-changing backdrop).	4-6 cyc lights.
Ground row	On the floor at the base of the cyc, hidden by scenery or a kicker.	Bottom-up wash for the cyclorama, often a different colour to the top to create gradient.	3-5 cyc lights.
Boom SL / Boom SR (stage-left / stage-right boom)	Vertical pipes in the wings either side of the stage. Floor-mounted, ~3m tall.	Side-light. Critical for dance shows (sculpts the body); often skipped in plays.	3-5 fixtures per boom, stacked at different heights.
Ladder	A horizontal-rung pre-built side-light position, hung from above rather than floor-mounted.	Same function as a boom — faster to rig but less adjustable.	3-5 fixtures.
Side-light box / wing-light position	In the wings, often at head-height.	Short-throw side-light for downstage area.	1-2 fixtures.
Practical position	On a set piece (a lamp, a chandelier, a torch).	Visible-source onstage light. Rarely the primary illumination — usually paired with off-stage fixture creating the "actual" light.	1 per practical.
Followspot position	In the auditorium back wall or balcony, manually-operated.	Tracks a performer (often the lead in a musical number).	1-2 fixtures. Each needs an operator.
Footlights	On the floor at the front of the stage, aimed up.	Up-light onto faces (period musical convention, dance, vaudeville). Rare in modern productions.	4-8 fixtures, often LED strip.
House lights	In the auditorium ceiling, over the audience seats.	Lights the audience to enter/exit. Controlled separately from the stage rig.	Venue infrastructure — not part of a hire.

Position abbreviations you'll see on a plot

DSL / DSR = Downstage Left / Downstage Right (from the actor's perspective looking at the audience).
USL / USR = Upstage Left / Upstage Right.
CS = Centre Stage.
SL / SR = Stage Left / Stage Right (always actor's perspective, not audience's).
FOH bar pos 6 = the 6th fixture position on the front-of-house bar, counting stage-right to stage-left (convention varies).
LX2 pos 3 = the 3rd fixture position on LX2.

Common mistake: "stage left" and "stage right" are the actor's perspective. From the audience, stage left appears on the right. When the LD says "the boom on SL", they mean the boom on the actor's left = the audience's right.