cyclorama

American  

[sahy-kluh-ram-uh, -rah-muh] / ˌsaɪ kləˈræm ə, -ˈrɑ mə /

noun

1. a pictorial representation, in perspective, of a landscape, battle, etc., on the inner wall of a cylindrical room or hall, viewed by spectators occupying a position in the center.

2. Theater. a curved wall or drop at the back of a stage, used for creating an illusion of unlimited space or distance in the background of exterior scenes or for obtaining lighting effects.

---

cyclorama British  

/ ˌsaɪkləʊˈræmɪk, ˌsaɪkləʊˈrɑːmə /

noun

1. Also called: panorama.  a large picture, such as a battle scene, on the interior wall of a cylindrical room, designed to appear in natural perspective to a spectator in the centre

2. theatre

   1. a curtain or wall curving along the back of a stage, usually painted to represent the sky and serving to enhance certain lighting effects

   2. any set of curtains that enclose the back and sides of a stage setting

---

Other Word Forms

• cycloramic adjective

Etymology

Origin of cyclorama

1830–40; cycl- + Greek ( h ) órāma view; panorama

Example Sentences

The video design by Luke Halls creates a poetic cyclorama of sea and skyline that conjures history in black-and-white imagery and occasionally summons the nightmares of its characters in gory color.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 8, 2022

Mr. Jones said the original cyclorama was destroyed and sold for scrap in the early 1900s.

From New York Times • Oct. 19, 2021

Some are in concert with the shape of the building — as in Bradford’s cyclorama.

From Washington Post • Sep. 29, 2021

In “The Sun Unto a Day,” the Bharatanatyam dancer Sonali Skandan places herself in cyclorama void like the one on “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver”; it exposes her imprecision.

From New York Times • May 24, 2021

“As for the why...I was being a jerk before about it. You were right—I wasn’t listening, and I realized I was being an idiot. The cyclorama wasn’t about the cyclorama. It...Anyway...”

From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon