Theatre Audiences and Perceptions of ‘Liveness’ in Performance

TLDR

The live nature of theatre distinguishes it from film or television, yet little qualitative research has examined whether audiences perceive a distinct experience of liveness. The study uses discourse analysis to investigate how contemporary audiences construct the concept of liveness in live theatre. The authors conduct a small‑scale audience study that reviews challenges to liveness concepts and language‑experience links before analysing participant discussions. Participant discussions highlight shared memory, awareness of the performer, and audience presence as central to theatre experience, suggesting these elements articulate a distinct perception of liveness.

Abstract

That theatre is performed live is central to its definition, particularly in contrast with non-live performances on film or television. Yet, despite the centrality of the issue, there is little qualitative research asking whether there is indeed a distinct nature to the experience of live performance. This paper employs techniques of discourse analysis to explore empirically originating understandings of how live theatre is constructed as live by audiences today. The paper first establishes its contextual background – examining prominent challenges to conceptualisations of liveness and looking at possible relationships between language and experience – before describing and analysing the findings of a small‑scale exercise in audience research. Through participant‑directed discussions, the paper reveals the centrality of shared memory, awareness of the human performer and sense of the audience to the experience of theatre and asks to what extent these represent the articulation of a distinct perception of liveness.