ABSTRACT
At the human level, we slip in and out of awareness of our own actions and the actions of others. The more aware we are of what we, or others, are doing, the more those actions are “performances.” Two ways of conceptualizing the broad spectrum of performance are “the fan and the web”. The broad spectrum can also be illustrated photographically. Performances occur in many different instances and kinds. Performance is best construed as a “broad spectrum” or “continuum” of human actions ranging from ritual, play, sports, popular entertainments, the performing arts, and everyday life performances to the enactment of social, professional, gender, race, and class roles, and on to healing, the media, and the internet. Most performances, in daily life and otherwise, do not have a single author. Rituals, games, and the performances of everyday life are authored by the collective “tradition,” a grand “anonymous.” The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
