A Fluid Aesthetics of Audience Participation

Abstract

The past decade witnessed many developments in audience participation: an evolution from immersive performing arts — which emphasise individual sensory experiences — to participatory performances — which highlight group dynamic experiences. Such performances generate a distinct aesthetics that can no longer be captured using terminology developed for immersive performing arts. To address the lack of theoretical knowledge to understand this aesthetics, this article offers a terminology that focuses on the tacit processes of audience-performer interplay. In our view, this interplay is a vital element of participatory performances, for instance, those by Katrien Oosterlinck (Belgium): it has become one of the main aesthetic materials. To analyse how this interplay is crucial to a fluid aesthetics, we (1) develop a definition of audience participation as an artistic medium, (2) introduce the notions of attunement, misattunement, and disattunement to address the volatility of such interplay, and (3) consider the role of the performer’s skills in moulding the aesthetics.