The Many Headed Monster is an original and inventive resource for anyone interested in contemporary performance practices and their relationships with audiences.

Across a range of artistic disciplines, artists are dealing with audiences in innovative and creative ways, placing the audience at the heart of their work. Contemporary culture is marked by the emancipation of the spectator and the transformation of the audience from passive recipient to active participant. The Many Headed Monster is a critical and practical resource investigating what is at stake for audiences today when they attend a live event.

The Many Headed Monster is a boxed set containing a lecture complete with presentation instructions, extended notes and author’s commentaries, a dvd of 22 performance works by leading UK and international artists, and 50 full colour image cards.

Featured artists include Ian Breakwell and Ron Geesin, Duckie, Blast Theory, Kira O’Reilly, Marina Abramovic and Ulay, Vito Acconci, Bock & Vincenzi, Gob Squad, JJ Xi and Cai Yuan, William Pope.L, Lone Twin, LIGNA, Hermann Nitsch, Coco Fusco and Guillermo Gómez-Peña, Annie Sprinkle, Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard, Carsten Höller, Yoko Ono, Laura Lima, Luke Jerram, Oreet Ashery and Joshua Sofaer.

The Many Headed Monster is available as a public resource in selected libraries, including Live Art Development Agency Study Room.