The fresh air Mak is letting into her "Oleanna" goes beyond the amphitheater's lack of walls-it blows within as well, to include the entire theater space. Mak's strategy is to make the audience an integral part of the play's setting, not really in an interactive way, but by using the interior of the amphitheater rather than just the stage to contain the action and structure of the play.

"Theater is an art that cannot go on without an audience," Mak said. "People must be emotionally involved. Emotional participation is as much a component of the theater experience as the lights or sets."

And for her production of "Oleanna," she's taken this concept even further. "The audience," she explained, "is actually part of the mise en scène."

The play itself, as its author has said, is "about the uses and abuses of power, and the corruption is on both sides." Both sides. Two characters. That's all there is in the play-John, a university professor, and his female student, Carol, who ostensibly comes to her professor's office for guidance. As each of its three acts ends, viewers may well find their allegiances in this psychological tug of war shifting back and forth.

The play gives you so much to think about after each act," said David Middleman, who is playing John in the Sidewinder production, "like little dominoes all over the place."

Middleman, who did Mamet's "Mr. Happiness" in the 1990s with the Rising Moon Theatre in Dallas, a company of which he was cofounder and artistic director, is no stranger to strange and powerful theater.

In Dallas, Middleman shook up theater audiences with his staging of incendiary New German Cinema auteur Rainer Werner Fassbinder's play "Pre Paradise Sorry Now." He also directed and played Gus in Harold Pinter's "The Dumb Waiter." Pinter, who was awarded the 2005 Nobel Prize for Literature and to whom Mamet dedicated his play "Glengarry Glen Ross" (for which Mamet in turn won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984), directed the first London performance of "Oleanna" at the Royal Court Theatre in 1993 to wide acclaim.

Middleman may have a surprise of his own up his sleeve when he dons his John costume for "Oleanna."

When asked, he implied his portrayal might be a bit unconventional, pointing out that people "have a tendency to pigeonhole Mamet as a tough guy" because they are used to seeing his popular work performed by actors like Joe Mantegna, William H. Macy and the late J. T. Walsh. On the flip side, he admits one of his favorite films is "House of Games," the first film Mamet wrote and directed, coincidentally starring all three of those actors.

Written one year after the spectacle of the Clarence Thomas Supreme Court confirmation hearings unfolded on national television, "Oleanna" is Mamet's rumination on the power dynamic surrounding the hotbed issues of sexual harassment and discrimination, political correctness and exploitation, freedom of thought and censorship. But at its core it's really about power, and how it shifts, sidewinding from one wielder to another. "Power," Mamet has said, "is about two people who want something different."

Artistic Director Mak is playing the role of Carol, a part she's taking on for a very specific reason. With her Spanish, Argentinian and French lineage, Mak said she is broadening the scope of the inquiry in her production by making Carol "a first generation Latino immigrant."

With immigration issues prevalent in the daily news, Mak felt that "Oleanna" could be used as a vehicle to "examine and confront stereotypes" and "open up some of those issues" dealing with prejudice and racism, as well as the topics sexism and elitism inherent in the play.

Mak is not the first to put a racial layer on Oleanna's bittersweet cake. A longtime friend and collaborator of Mamet's, William H. Macy (who played John in the premier of "Oleanna" in 1992), directed the Los Angeles debut of the play in 1994 at The Tiffany Theater in West Hollywood. In that version, Macy elected to cast the role with an African American actor, Mark Lionel Smith. Smith, another friend of Mamet's who frequently acts in his films, produced a 2005 film version of Mamet's play "Edmond" (which starred Macy), and appeared in Mamet's new CBS television series, "The Unit."

In addition to the racial overtones of Mak's Mamet, the ethical dilemmas of the play are also front page news these days. "'Oleanna' asks you about the choices you make in life and the effect that has on your world," Mak said. "I think Oleanna is an important play for this moment in time because it asks 'How far are we willing to go to get what we want?' and 'When is it too far?'" For Mak, these ethical questions are at the heart of "Oleanna."

Mak-and Mamet-are cordially inviting everyone to try and answer them.

Sidewinder Actors Theatre's "Oleanna" opens Friday, April 21, at the City Center Amphitheater at 101 Easy Street in Carefree. Performances continue April 23, 27, 29 and May 4 6. Tickets are $25, $20 for seniors, $15 for students and are available at www.sidewindertheatre.net and at the Chamber of Commerce in Carefree. For information, call (480) 699 4271.

Reach the reporter at cmoore@thedesertadvocate.com