As the symbolists, constructivists and surrealists of the historical avant-garde began to abandon traditional theatre spaces and embrace the more contingent locations of the theatrical and political 'event', the built environment of a performance became not only part of the event, but an event in and of itself. Event-Space radically re-evaluates the avant garde's championing of nonrepresentational spaces, drawing on the specific fields of performance studies and architectural studies to establish a theory of 'performative architecture'. 'Event' was of immense significance to modernism's revolutionary agenda, resisting realism and naturalism - and, simultaneously, the monumentality of architecture itself. Event-Space analyzes a number of spatiotemporal models central to that revolution, both illuminating the history of avant-garde performance and inspiring contemporary approaches to performance space.

As the symbolists, constructivists and surrealists of the historical avant-garde began to abandon traditional theatre spaces and embrace the more contingent locations of the theatrical and political 'event', the built environment of a performance became not only part of the event, but an event in and of itself. Event-Space radically re-evaluates the avant garde's championing of nonrepresentational spaces, drawing on the specific fields of performance studies and architectural studies to establish a theory of 'performative architecture'. 'Event' was of immense significance to modernism's revolutionary agenda, resisting realism and naturalism - and, simultaneously, the monumentality of architecture itself. Event-Space analyzes a number of spatiotemporal models central to that revolution, both illuminating the history of avant-garde performance and inspiring contemporary approaches to performance space.

This book looks at various important events relating to the poetics of light in theatre production in the West in the twentieth century, from the great reformists at the beginning of the century to contemporary artists such as Josef Svoboda, Alwin Nikolais and Robert Wilson. The intention isn't to outline a somewhat comprehensive history of stage lighting, instead it is an attempt to identify some basic issues concerning its use. Lighting issues are unshackled from the limited contexts of technique and image, where they often end up only to be relegated, and examined in the context of the performance's space/time structure, poetic and dramatic construction, and the relationship with the performer. A section dedicated to the theatrical work of the author outlines the distinctive point of view behind the book, regarding the creative processes and the operational relationship with technique. The title Active Light is a direct reference to Adolphe Appia who, at the end of the nineteenth century, was one of the first to deal with the issue of light explicitly as an artistic issue in theatre, with his own writings and creations. As far as Appia was concerned lumiere active was expressive light, creating shapes, forming poetic matter and dramatic substance.

In Performance Design, a group of international artists, architects, scenographers, performers, and theorists explore the speculative and dynamic acts of designing performance and performing design. The theoretical essays and realized projects offer a lively and stimulating range of performative expressions across disciplines and show how design artifacts whether objects, materials, images, occasions, or environments are inextricably bound to performance through notions of embodiment, action, and event in which stories are told, forces are harnessed, and roles are played out. The fluid and emerging field called performance design is presented as an aesthetic practice that, through the participatory role of a co-creative audiences, provides a critical tool for reflecting and challenging worldviews.