Introductiont to Theatre Making
Drama 102
Ground Plan
Ground plan is a graphic tool useful in describing spatial relationships and movement patterns. It is essentially a birds eye view of a space describing its shape and contents using a simple set of coded line weights.
Imagine the space to be described as being sliced horizontally by a chest high plane parallel to the floor. To generate the ground plan, draw what one would see looking down at the space through the cutting plane using the following guidelines.
Use Heavy Weight Lines to describe anything the cutting plane intersects: Walls, columns, trees, for instance. Anything that exists in the space which is taller than chest high.
Use Medium Weight Lines to describe anything that is below the cutting plane but does not intersect it. Most furniture and platforms would fall in the category
Use Medium Weight Dashed Lines to describe things which do not intersect the cutting plane but which are hidden from view either by being underneath something closer to the cutting plane (a trash can under a table) or by being above the cutting plane (a hanging light fixture.)
Use a Light Weight Line to describe something about the space that is not in and of itself an object. Arrows describing the sweep of a door swing or an arrow telling us that a stairway goes up or down are examples of this sort of information.
Ground plans are intended to describe spatial relationships not the appearance of objects. If the nature of a object is not clear from the bird’s-eye view, add a label.
Heights are also indicated by notes or labels. It is conventional to give heights in inches above or below the primary floor level. A platform which is one foot six inches above the stage should be labels +18”. A trap which is six feet deep should be labeled –72”
It is crucial not to confuse this method of describing space with mechanical drafting. Parallel rulers and 30-60-90 triangles are used to make very precise drawings, but a ground plan can be just as effective drawn freehand on the back of an envelope.
Ground Plans can be drawn to a specific scale – ¼” on the drawing equals 1’0” in reality, for instance – but what is more important is that everything be drawn in proportion to each other. As long as all aspects of the space are drawn to the same scale, the drawing will accurately describe the spatial relationships and movement implications of the space.
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