Happenings Page 4

This absence of audience emotional involvement was one of the key functions of a happening. Other important influences to note would have to include the plays of Pirandello and Artaud's Theatre of Cruelty. Although the creation of happenings was grounded with a root in the past, the uniqueness and influence of happenings should not be discredited. Happenings borrowed from the past and revolutionized for the future.

Theatre, like many of the arts, is a craft that is ruled by both convention and revolution. Without convention, revolution would not be possible, and without revolution, new conventions could not be set. Happenings came along when many thought that the conventions of theatre were outdated and it tested the theatre in a way that had never been done before. Although the happenings movement gradually lost momentum, its influence can still be seen in much of today's modern art. The questioning of convention by artist such as Kaprow forms the base for revolution and ensures that art will always stay fresh, and while the heyday for happenings has long past, its impact will remain.

Citations:
PERFORMANCE ART: From Futurism to the Present. RoseLee Goldberg. Harry N. Abrams, Inc.. New York. 1988.

Back to Page 1 of Happenings, 2, 3