Aurora Theatre's 150-seat intimate house is a great place to experience live theatre. The audience sits on three sides of a deep-thrust stage with no person sitting farther than 15 feet away from the performance. The program schedule consists of classics from great playwrights as well as new works by up-and-coming authors. A defining characteristic of the Aurora Theatre is its intimate performance space and its emphasis on subtlety, shadings of feeling and ensemble responsiveness. Aurora is often referred to as "chamber theatre." In 18 years of operation, it has won 20 awards from the Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle in the areas of acting, directing, ensemble and costume work. Aurora Theatre is uniquely positioned in downtown Berkeley is surrounded by a diverse urban community. Audiences consist of theatregoers from the East Bay and San Francisco, and is quickly expanding in the Greater Bay Area.