The Anthropology of Theater and Spectacle

Abstract

In this essay I explore studies of theater and spectacle as distinct cultural institutions. Several kinds of cultural activity closely related to this topic have extensive literatures of their own, but I do not treat them here. These include play and games, sports and contests, verbal art and poetry, and dance and music outside the context of theater and spectacle. The distinction is arbitrary. The boundary between theater and spectacle and many other forms of enactment is difficult to determine. Theatrical activ­ ity is a component of many performance genres, and vice versa. Here I attempt to elucidate the specifically theatrical aspect of human life. I have not limited myself to works written by anthropologists. Indeed, I hope to excite anthropol­ ogists with an awareness of the work done in other fields. This essay treats 1. the study of performance in anthropology and related disciplines, 2. the institutions of theater and spectacle, 3. specific genres of theater and spectacle, and 4. the creation of cultural meaning within frame­ works of theater and spectacle.