Riotous Performances

Theater audiences have been expressing their opinions about what is happing on stage and in the world around them for centuries. In some instances, uproarious behavior bordering on — and including — full-fledged riots, have provided early indications of profound conflicts taking shape within society that eventually can gather to overturn the political and social order. As the cases discussed here — drawn from Naples, London, Brussels, New York, Dublin, Paris, Miami, and Kyiv — suggest, such disturbances can reflect economic discontent, the rise of nationalist identities, and the emergence of new artistic movements. A night at the theater, the concert hall, or the club is always about more than the background noise of our lives. What happens when performers meet their audiences signals how we see our futures; and ourselves; and how we like what we see, or not.