The City and Performance spaces – Performance spaces as Urban catalysts

All arts are essential expressions of human existence. Performance Arts in particular, have evolved as a primary manifestation of their respective cultures and subsequently have a profound impact on the functioning of these cultures. The collective nature of performing arts renders it public, making it vital to understand the role of performing arts in socio cultural development and its built environments that actively generates the specific image and vision of the place and the city. A chronological examination of performance spaces reveals that they tend to occur progressively as technically advanced, closed isolated boxes through time, enabling one to create and conduct performances in the most imaginative manner. In that respect, performance spaces are as important a tool for a good performance as a well-tuned instrument or an artist. While their typology requires performance spaces to be a closed box, they are also inherently public spaces. The challenge then is to be able to house this instrument along with public spaces in their respective contexts. This initiates inquiry into the nature of spaces, which generates and enables environments where performances can occur in a specific context and in turn how performances and the spaces that host them influence their contexts.