Performing arts

The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which produce physical or static objects. Performing arts include a range of disciplines which are performed in front of a live audience, including theatre, music, and dance. Performances may take place in purpose-built buildings, such as theatres and opera houses, as well as in open air festivals, street settings, and recorded formats like film or television. Performing arts traditions are present in every society. Music and dance date to prehistoric times, while theatrical forms appear in Ancient Greece, India, and China. Performance served combinations of religious, ceremonial, and entertainment functions. Traditions including Japanese Noh and Kabuki, as well as Indian classical dance, have been recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Western performing arts history spans ancient Greek tragedy and comedy through medieval mystery plays, the emergence of opera and ballet in the Renaissance, and the Romantic expansion of grand opera. In the modernist revolutions of the early 20th century, figures such as Isadora Duncan, Konstantin Stanislavski, and Sergei Diaghilev reworked the principles of dance and theatre. Postmodern performance increasingly challenges the boundaries between disciplines. Live performances before an audience are a form of entertainment. The development of audio and video recording has allowed for private consumption of the performing arts. In narrative performance, characters express emotions.