Art & MusicGreek → English
Scenography
/siˈnɒɡrəfi/noun
The design of the whole visual world of a theatre production, including set, light and the use of space.
The Greek roots
σκηνή
skēnḗ
tent, stage building
γράφειν
gráphein
to draw, to write
Literally: “drawing for the stage building”
The story of the word
σκηνή was the hut behind the acting area where the actors changed, and it gave English both the scene and the scenery painted in front of it. Ancient sources credit Agatharchus with the first perspective backdrops, painted for Aeschylus, and say his work set Anaxagoras and Democritus writing on perspective. Scenography today covers far more than paint, taking in light, sound and how a body moves through the space.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → English
- First recorded
- 17th century
Same family
sceneprosceniumgraphicphotograph
In a sentence
The scenography does the work the script leaves out.
She studied scenography in Prague and never designed a flat wall again.