14 Facts About Street theatre

Street theatre is a form of theatrical performance and presentation in outdoor public spaces without a specific paying audience.

Street theatre play is considered to be the rawest form of acting, because one does not have a microphone or loud speakers.

Sometimes performers are commissioned, especially for street festivals, children's shows or parades, but more often street theatre performers are unpaid or gather some income through the dropping of a coin in a hat by the audience.

Logistics of doing street theatre necessitate simple costumes and props, and often there is little or no amplification of sound, with actors depending on their natural vocal and physical ability.

Street theatre should be distinguished from other more formal outdoor theatrical performances, such as performances in a park or garden, where there is a discrete space set aside and a ticketed audience.

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In some cases, street theatre performers have to get a licence or specific permission through local or state governments in order to perform.

Street theatre is arguably the oldest form of theatre in existence: most mainstream entertainment mediums can be traced back to origins in street performing, including religious passion plays and many other forms.

Notable performers that began their careers as street theatre performers include Robin Williams, David Bowie, Jewel and Harry Anderson.

Street theatre allows people who might not have ever been to, or been able to afford to go to, traditional theatre.

Some contemporary street theatre practitioners have extensively studied pre-existing street and popular theatre traditions, such as Carnival, commedia dell'arte etc.

Character-based street theatre which developed in the 1960s and 1970s was developed by groups like Lumiere and Son, John Bull Puncture Repair Kit, Exploded Eye and Natural Theatre Company.

Interactive street theatre is a combination of two separate art forms, street theatre and interactive art.

Unlike other interactive art, the presentation of interactive street theatre is outside in a public place and most of the time at festivals.

In Peru, interactive street theatre was used to raise awareness of the many misconceptions of family planning and use of contraceptives.