As an emblem of the culture which spawns it, a theatre is fundamentally a facility for human interaction in which the material of life can be transformed into art. As such, it plays a pivotal role in giving significant shape to experience and should function with the highest possible degree of efficiency. It should allow an audience to observe and react, and it should permit a rehearsed event to take place without distortion. In order for a theatre to fulfill this obligation, it must be capable of bringing spectators and performers together in an intricate interrelationship that can unleash forces that neither side could achieve alone.
— Martin Bloom, Accommodating the Lively Arts: An Architect’s View
