The auditorum of the Vivian Beaumont theater was big—that was the first thing that hit her. The stage at the back wall jutted out into the audience so that people could see it from three sides. The seats were arranged in five sections that surrounded the stage; taken together, they formed three quarters of a circle. The floor, covered with a thick carpet, slanted downward toward the stage so people in the back rows could see over the heads of those in front of them. There were more seats in a balcony that curved around the theater on three sides.

An usher approached Carrie's escorts to take them to their seats; Carrie quickly backed away. There was a group of people who seemed to be hanging around at the back of the theater. According to what Zoe had told her, these were the standees. Carrie melted into their ranks, and, feeling safe, for the moment, stared at the exposed stage on which several pieces of furniture had been set.

Meanwhile, the excitement in the auditorium was escalating. A couple of latecomers had just scrambled into their seats but everyone else was sitting, rattling playbills and talking. The conversations became a buzz that bounced around the walls. Then, suddenly, the lights began to dim. Instantly the house went silent. It was eerie how quickly it seemed to happen. Now all eyes were fixed on the stage. The theater darkened to black, and the excitement was still growing until Carrie was sure the theater couldn't contain it. But then a second later the stage was flooded with light. There was a little intake of breath from the audience as the backdrop was illuminated and the furniture on the stage was revealed to be a part of a living room set. Then there was a burst of applause, and Carrie knew the magic had begun. Part of it was the way the lights played on the stage and made everything on it seem like it belonged to a fairy-tale world. Part of the magic was the way the audience was transformed. They had started out as strangers; when the lights came up on the stage they bonded together into one large mass. There was something childlike and eager about them. Carrie wanted to run down the aisle hugging as many of them as she could grab.

At that moment, the usher came over to Carrie, flicked on her flashlight, and demanded in a whisper to see Carrie 's ticket. Seconds later Carrie was shooed out of the theater. Relieved that her punishment was nothing more than a momentary embarrassment, Carrie ran all the way back to her apartment. She'd gotten what she wanted. She'd felt the magic of live theater.