Performativity

Even with a funding body that encourages artists to fit fixed categories, and a culture that identifies the script as the basis of theatre, companies and artists are pulling themselves out of shape and becoming more experimental. Whether it is Modo using clowning to explore the experience of hospitalisation, Vox Motus rocking puppetry or the National Theatre of Scotland handing the keys over to Live Art graduates, the old idea of theatre is dissolving. Of course, there are still many versions of Hamlet running around, but even Scottish Opera, through their 5:15 programme, are seeking alternatives.

The new section name responds to this shift. Our long-standing commitment to cabaret, our tentative look at storytelling, our interest in seeking out events that fall into no category, like Kill Your Timid Notion, only reflects the trends in theatre. When even Glasgow's conservatoire has a Contemporary Performance Practice degree, we can't even claim to be catching an underground spirit.

Fortunately, this month is filled with events that prove the point. Kabarett, the alternative variety night, stars both Mister Joe Black and The Creative Matyrs. Black has been shocking burlesque crowds with his irreverent routines and Victorian villainy, and The Martyrs span Berlin decadence and a contemporary, dark, political satire. They might both fit easily into the neo-burlesque revival, except that their shared sense of absurdity and willingness to cross genre boundaries connects to a theatrical heritage including Brecht and the Grand Guignol.

Theatre has been difficult enough to define for the past century: easy classifications into high and low art have been blurred, and it is tough to identify the link between The Lyceum's Cherry Orchard and the musical Bad Boy Johnny and The Prophets of Doom, except that they happen in the same sort of building. The increasing emphasis on community participation is shared by the Movers and Shakers show at The Panopticon and The NTS' Transform Aberdeen project, and the monologues of A Play, A Pie and A Pint have much in common with The Edinburgh Storytelling Centre's Electric Tales, which collaborates with stand up comedians.

Of course, there are some works that are clearly "theatre": well established genres, frequently based on the script, or opera, ballet and contemporary dance. These events remain at the heart of the section. But since they are increasingly being fed by marginal performance, it is vital that The Skinny identifies the new, supports the emerging and enters the various domains with an authoritative voice. Over the coming months, the website will see a collection of essays exploring personal responses to genres, gradually mapping out the Scottish and national scenes.

If performance is not static, criticism must keep pace. As boundaries dissolve, the role of the critic become more protean, chasing the style that accurately reflects the emotional impact of an event and answering the call of the artist for a vivid, intelligent and personal response. My own experience at the theatre has been life-changing, terrifying, ecstatic. In some small way, the Performance section hopes to imitate this excitement.