What should we call the study of the performing arts? 'Drama', 'theatre' and 'performance' each identify with a different tradition of thought and offer different possibilities to the student or practitioner.This book examines the history and use of the terms 'Drama', 'theatre' and performance' and investigates the different philosophies, politics, languages and institutions with which they are associated.Simon Shepherd and Mick Wallis: *Analyse attitudes to drama, theatre and performance at different historical junctures*Trace a range of political interventions into the field(s)*Explore and contextualise the institutionalisation of drama as a university subject, then the emergence of performance' as practice, theory and academic discipline*Guide readers through major approaches to drama, theatre and performance, from theatre history to theories of play and presence*Discuss crucial terms such as action, alienation, catharsis, character, empathy, interculturalism, mimesis, presence or representation in a substantial 'keywords' section.Continually linking their analysis to wider cultural concerns, the authors here offer the most wide-ranging and authoritative guide available to a vibrant, fast-moving field and its hotly contested debates.