"Unique in scope and execution, this dictionary accomplishes what no other volume has ever attempted: it defines terms that are special to and shared by the various performing arts for performers, for those who work behind the scenes and for those who want to deepen their understanding of what they see on stage. From a battuta to zydeco, this book defines in a forthright, accessible way the common and specialized terms used in music, theater, dance and performance.

Its cross-disciplinary scope illuminates the ways that the same word is used by different types of artists, so we understand, for instance, that when an actor and a dancer speak of beats or a lighting designer changes the key, they may not be thinking in musical terms."--BOOK JACKET.

"With more than 6,700 entries drawn from scores of disciplines, cross-references and pronunciation guides to foreign phrases, this dictionary gives performers and patrons of the performing arts a better understanding of the everyday language used on and behind the stage."--BOOK JACKET.