Have you ever noticed how clever you feel in the theatre? You get the joke when no one on the stage is laughing. You see the threat that no one on the stage seems to notice. You weep when leading characters do not shed a tear. Sometimes you feel an almost God-like understanding of people and events.THWho put you in this privileged position? EThe Audience & The PlaywrightE analyzes the tactics used by all playwrights from Sophocles to David Mamet to give the audience extraordinary powers and a unique role that it will play perfectly and without rehearsal.THStructured as an evening in the theatre the book is analytical but straightforward serious but entertaining. A working playwright’s view of what really happens between the stage and the audience from the beginning of the play until the end it is a book for the serious theatregoer as well as a book for the college classroom.TH Mayo Simon would be a wonderful opening night date. He knows the theatre like the palm of his hand loves it and articulates it. Short of Mayo as a date this book is your best companion. THa Jon JoryTHProfessor of Acting & Directing University of Washington School of Drama