Do Your Part

The musicians play...that's a given.
Performers perform.
Okay.

What is the audience's function?
They pay the tab, they have no part to play.
Or do they?

They pay for the venue. They eat and drink. What more should they do?
Clean the restrooms?

Audiences feed the performers. Energy. The reason Nils Lofgren used to do 360 somersaults was the reaction he received in return. Hendrix humped his guitar for a reaction from the crowd. It was not an "artistic statement."
Very few of those, anyway.

They interact with the band. A subtle dance for the most part, every once in a while an overt act.
When the overzealous fan threw a Frisbee and hit Johnny Winter in the head...I cannot recall how his playing reflected the whack to the noggin, it was 1973 after all.

The new behavior I have witnessed, however is becoming onerous.
Cell phones. Singing along with the band. Screaming children.
Switch them off? I understand a tavern, but a concert hall? What a social faux pas!
The last time singing along with the performers was allowable was a Jerry Vale concert in 1975.
Children? Yes, my mother took me to see Pete Seeger. My father, Victor Borge.
Screaming children? Never. Take them outside, thank you very much.

Believe it or not, it's a duet.