Tourism and performative practices in contemporary Mallorca

Abstract

Tourism is a central theme in theatre production in Mallorca today. This article analyses a corpus of twelve theatre plays that draw on different formats, ranging from drama text to interactive performances in the public space, to explore the importance of tourism in the redefinition of local culture. The purpose of this article is to analyse how these productions deal with the consensus on an idea of collective heritage, the construction of an identity interfered with by tourist culture, and the representation of a new model of political agency promoted by both environmental activists and artistic creators. On a more metatheoretical level, this article aims to contribute to shaping Catalan cultural studies as an academic and interdisciplinary field more observant of the geopolitics of the region and the local effects of global dynamics, such as those caused by tourism.