I buy it.

the line I’m drawing is just the standard one, nothing special, mostly referring to how the two canons have evolved (theater and performance). eat the street doesn’t look like most of what is considered theatre, while it does look like a lot of stuff that has been filed under performance art or relational aesthetics or social practice (those three terms much more flexible and interchangeable than theatre). but we can only really talk about tendencies – theatre tends to have audience sitting and listening, performers doing things that are usually pretend or at least more or less repeatable night after night, there are lights, someone plays an audio cue now and again, etc etc. you know…. theatre.

Darren, to be fair, I asked Lindsay to look at Eat the Street in the context of theatre, even though it could easily not be. Mostly because this is a theatre blog and so I like to keep things focused.

Im interested in the distinction you make between performance and theatre, and how ETS is one and not the other. I think I agree, but I’d be curious to know how/why you draw that line.

Finally – my bad – was supposed to credit both images to Mammaian, which I did not:

All images courtesy of Mammalian

I’m glad you liked the neighborhood vibe of the final show but i have to agree with you that some more spectacle would be nice. But the problem is a big but simple one: no time. Because the jury comes from a bunch of different classes we can’t get any in-school time with them. Another problems is the size of the group – trying to whip up a performance with 30 seasoned pros would be a challenge, but 30 13-year-olds??? yikes!

i think for now it’s going to have to remain a nice cozy earnest neighborhood experience that’s meaningful to insiders only. I think for those who attended a number of dinners the meaning is much stronger. if you knew the kids and the restaurants a little better, it would be better. but i know that’s asking a lot.

also – no, it’s not theater. but it might be performance and it certainly is audience building. my hope is for Mammalian to be more than a theatre company, with lots of activities happening that feedback into our theatre stuff, but not all stuff needs to be identified as theater. nor should it be. and i also want to see how far we can push the work to see what else it becomes when/if it stops being theatre.

that said, we’re currently developing two works that will be stage-based.

anyway, see you soon. I’m out of town. will be in touch when i get back.