I'll agree with you on Shakespeare, but I also prefer to read Ibsen and Chekhov. I recently read 'A Voice From the Attic' by Robertson Davies who takes a stance on closet drama similar to Pompey Bum's; namely that it's inferior to seeing a staged production, but the lack of opportunities most people have for viewing a really first rate production of any play, let alone obscure ones, necessitates developing a good internal production crew if you want to enjoy drama. Anyway I disagree, I think it's always better to read the play than to view it.