stage direction

American  

noun

1. an instruction written into the script of a play, indicating stage actions, movements of performers, or production requirements.

2. the art or technique of a stage director.

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stage direction British  

noun

1. an instruction to an actor or director, written into the script of a play

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stage direction Cultural  

1. Part of the script of a play that tells the actors how they are to move or to speak their lines. Enter, exit, and exeunt are stage directions.

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Etymology

Origin of stage direction

First recorded in 1780–90

Example Sentences

Today, to gauge a film’s potential, Macy aims to read scripts in one sitting and skips over the stage directions.

From The Wall Street Journal

She ushered, worked the box office, read stage directions for new plays — she had days jobs, too, like working at TGI Fridays — “By the way, they just offered me suspenders since I never got them.”

From Los Angeles Times

But that was not without some stage direction.

From Los Angeles Times

Samuel Beckett, a stickler for faithfulness, didn’t share this laissez-faire attitude toward his stage directions, which he expected to be punctiliously observed by others.

From Los Angeles Times

Even like having to write the action lines, because a lot of my plays, there’s no stage directions.

From Los Angeles Times