Power and powerlessness in performance: an introduction in three parts

This editorial is an introduction to power / powerlessness, theatre and performance conceived as an intervention piece in three parts written by each of the three editors of this issue. The first part is an extended analysis of power and powerless in performance developed by Georg Döcker. The second part, developed by Eve Katsouraki, discusses the implications of a powerless theatre, especially during times of crisis such as the recent pandemic, and urges us to consider a new resilient model of theatre. Finally, the third part, by Gerald Siegmund, focuses on the interface between powerlessness and the aesthetics of theatre and performance. All the three interventionist parts of this introduction offer a conceptual framework upon which the articles of this issue can be seen to develop their examinations. We decided against offering descriptions of the articles themselves since each author has provided an abstract of their article.