ABSTRACT
So far there have been few star performers in this account of theatre architecture in the last twenty-five years, other than the geniuses such as Tyrone Guthrie, Peter Brook, Ariane Mnouchkine and Michael Elliott who have created theatrical environments which have not only served their own purposes but have also inspired others. There have been many villains who must be hissed off to clear the stage for the heroes of this piece: the actor and the audience. For it is these two groups of people who are essential for theatre to exist, who are there when everyone else has gone home, round to the pub, or returned to their drawing boards or calculators. Except for the ushers and stage management they are the only ones to sit it out, to be the indispensable elements in making theatre for three concentrated hours. Everyone else, including too often the critics in the front few rows, is a voyeur.
