1.1 a distinction between performance art and

1. 1 INTRODUCTION” The arts are an essential element ofeducation, just like reading, writing, and arithmetic…music, dance, painting, and theater are all keys that unlock profound human understanding andaccomplishment.” William Bennett, Former US Secretary ofEducation” I realize thepower of art that does not hang on the walls of galleries.” MARINA ABRAMOVIC, TheGuardian, October 2, 2010 Why do we need to deal with arts? How can arts, performing arts precisely affects intellectual and socialdevelopments of people? Can the special layout and the design language ofperforming arts centers seeks to have a different new methodology, behavior andblend with the social fabric of the country? Can the urban spaces act ascreativity spaces as well? Well, too many practical andtheoretical questions were raised but in order to answer these questions weneed first to understand the type of the project and how it’s related to thesocial content of Bahrain. 1.

2 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDYTo start with, we need first toanswer a very important question; what is performing arts? The definition ofperforming arts is broad and could be confusing, but it usually referred to thetype of art that presented “ live”. It is mainly presented by an artist or groupof performers. Performing Art depends simply onthe presence (and absence) of the body. The body, site, audience and time areits four pillars, with corporeal action the central axis. Artists turned to thephysical body and brought an ‘ aliveness’, a temporality and instability toartworks. (RoseLeeGoldberg, 2001)There were some thoughts todistinguish performing arts from performance arts which may we think it is thesame. Some opinions say that the PerformingArts refers to theatre, dance, opera and the circus. Cultural anthropologist ‘ VictorTurner’ made a distinction between Performance Art and the Performing Arts whenhe defined Performance Art as: ‘ making, not faking’.

The performance artist isnot acting in the theatrical sense because every action is real.  In the 1970s, Performance Art stood in directopposition to performing arts or theatre especially. As the form, has developedthey considered them the same due to many similarities. (Victor Turner, 1984)Accordingto UNESCO, performing arts are a sustainable branch of culture. “ The performing arts range from vocaland instrumental music, dance and theatre to pantomime, sung verse and beyond.

They include numerous cultural expressions that reflect human creativity andthat are also found, to some extent, in many other intangible cultural heritagedomains”. Music, for example is the most universal type of the performing artsand it’found in every society. It is found as an integral part of otherperforming art forms and other fields of intangible cultural heritage likerituals and festive events. Performing arts are more than simply ‘ performances’for an audience; they also play important roles in culture and society. (UNESCO, 2014)Ithink the most important part of the performing arts is being beneficial and meaningful.

Performing arts like theatre for example deals with different type of arts, different categories in the society and send different massages; social, political and religious issues. It is an art for everyone.” What specialize theatre is the live human interaction between theperformer and the audience. This space that is minimizing because of the truth; the truth of the feelings and the emotions.

In my opinion, theatre is the firstplace that create the person awareness. Theatre deals with most of the social, political and religious issues. Of course, many changes happened to theatrebecause of the new technology, but whenever theatre is close to the truth andthe human, it is more effective.” HASHIM ALAWAI/LOCALARTIST 1. 2.

1 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND TO THE STUDYPerforming arts were found in the oldest communities focusing onnature before they had scientific knowledge. They explained the relationship ofthemselves to the world around them through the arts. Historians believe thatearly people used dance both as a religious ritual and for social expression. Thedrama was also found in old communities. The origins of the early theatre werefound as storytelling and in ritual dances and ceremonies.

(SharonWuorenmaa, 2005) Performing arts flourished as a type of art following the movementsof modernism in the 1960s, and it extended across the world.