I remember reading something by the great director, Peter Brook, warning that adding anything literal to a stage set, like running water or a gas stove, creates an expectation of reality that is fundamentally at odds with the magic of theater. Theatre demands a leap of faith. He said that when we have running water on stage, a pencil can no longer become a rocket. It can only be a pencil. This photo shows the set from Peter Brook’s production of Battlefield at ACT. Notice that the people, the actors, create the meaning of the abstract space; their actions make the space a place. It can be a battlefield, a temple, or a kitchen. The same is true for any human interaction. When people connect, no matter if it’s on a stage, in a boardroom, or…Read on.