Petra's theatre was built in the 1st century AD. It is quite large, with a seating capacity of over 6,000 people. The theatre's 45 rows of seats are divided horizontally by two diazomata. Its cavea faces north and east, to keep the sun out of the spectators' eyes. Above the cavea are numerous tomb fronts, which were destroyed to make way for the theatre's upper tiers of seating.