downstage

[ adverb noun doun-steyj; adjective doun-steyj ]

adverb

1. at or toward the front of the stage.

adjective

1. of or relating to the front of the stage.

noun

1. the front half of the stage.

downstage

/ ˈdaʊnˈsteɪdʒ /

adverb

1. at or towards the front of the stage

adjective

1. of or relating to the front of the stage

noun

1. the front half of the stage

Word History and Origins

Origin of downstage¹

First recorded in 1895–1900; down ¹ + stage

Example Sentences

He not only conducted the orchestra upstage, but regularly pivoted to turn downstage, cuing the principal singers when they needed it.

From Seattle Times

DeBessonet’s staging, refined but little altered from the Encores! outing, uses only a wide set of stairs and a downstage strip in front of them.

From New York Times

We see her in close-up on a screen downstage, her image frustratingly out of sync with the sound of her voice, which travels faster.

From New York Times

Kushner remembers how moments before the final confrontation between Biff and Willy Loman in “Death of a Salesman” Garfield would walk downstage and smoke a cigarette, leaning into a spot of red light.

From Washington Post

These puppeteers are her caretakers, surely — because in this puppet-and-dance piece Sonia is ill, and her faltering body needs assistance as she puts on a gown and moves painstakingly downstage toward her grand, gilt-edged chair.

From New York Times