Street performance Entertainment

Street entertainment, street performance or "busking" are forms of performance that have been meeting the public's need for entertainment for centuries. It was "an integral aspect of London's life", for example, when the city in the early 19th century was "filled with spectacle and diversion". Minstrels or troubadours are part of the tradition. The art and practice of busking is still celebrated at annual busking festivals.

There are three basic forms of contemporary street performance. The first form is the "circle show". It tends to gather a crowd, usually has a distinct beginning and end, and is done in conjunction with street theatre, puppeteering, magicians, comedians, acrobats, jugglers and sometimes musicians. This type has the potential to be the most lucrative for the performer because there are likely to be more donations from larger audiences if they are entertained by the act. Good buskers control the crowd so patrons do not obstruct foot traffic. The second form, the "walk-by act", has no distinct beginning or end. Typically, the busker provides an entertaining ambience, often with an unusual instrument, and the audience may not stop to watch or form a crowd. Sometimes a walk-by act will spontaneously turn into a circle show. The third form, "café busking", is performed mostly in restaurants, pubs, bars and cafés. This type of act occasionally uses public transport as a venue.