ABSTRACT
Since the 1970s a number of significant changes have taken place with regard to outdoor theatre. From a performer’s point of view, one of the most apparent is that the public is now more used to outdoor theatre. The very fresh reaction that could be achieved fifteen years ago is found only in culturally remote places. Recently I attended one of the first street theatre festivals in Russia. Together with groups from Poland and Italy we made a procession through a town that had been closed to foreigners for decades because there were military factories nearby. Street theatre was unheard of, so the curiosity and excitement were intense. It was as if the entire process of glasnost was encapsulated in that half hour. Back in Britain, the public reaction to people doing unusual things in the street seems much more blasé. Most people in Britain have heard of the new-look Covent Garden and therefore know about the entertainers there. Because charity fundraisers have acquired the habit of going round in fancy dress, there is also a general suspicion that anyone in costume will be asking for money.
