The Performer

Urgent, penetrating, moving. A masterwork from a master thinker.

Urgent, penetrating, moving. A masterwork from a master thinker.

Richard Sennett calls on his vast knowledge of theater and performance to argue for the social uses of civility—and against the degradation of public social space brought by demagogues. This is a book that ranges widely while speaking forcefully to our current needs.

[A] timely study of the place of performance in society ... Sennett combines erudition with personal experience ... Performance, he believes, and the emotions it arouses, are fundamental to being human ... colourful stories ... unique insight and intelligence

He looks at every aspect of performing - where it is done, stage or street; the performances of demagogues; the audience who takes it all in; the masks, clothing and appurtenances of acting in public. Sennett uses a wide frame of reference to bolster his analysis

Sennett has the confidence to present a grand international cultural narrative ... revealing ... enjoyable

Richard Sennett grew up in the Cabrini Green housing project in Chicago, attended the Julliard School in New York and then studied social relations at Harvard. Over the last five decades, he has written about social life in cities, changes in labour and social theory. His books include The Hidden Injuries of Class , The Fall of Public Man , The Corrosion of Character , The Culture of the New Capitalism , The Craftsman and Building and Dwelling . Sennett has advised the United Nations on urban issues for the past thirty years and currently serves as member of the UN Committee on Urban Initiatives. He is Visiting Professor of Urban Studies at Harvard. Among other awards, he has received the Hegel Prize, the Spinoza Prize and the Centennial Medal from Harvard University.