Happenings

the long version

In this book, Michael Kirby sets out to define and describe those curious performances which have taken on the name of happenings. The descriptions-in words and pictures-are illuminating. The introduction traces the influences--of action painting, surrealism, abstract expressionism, Dadaism, W. C. Fields, and the Marx Brothers--upon the form of happenings. More informative is the section in which five makers of happenings state the aims and devices of their creations. These statements are followed by the scripts of happenings and by long meticulous descriptions of the performance of each happening. The performances which are described have been liberally illustrated with photographs which give an excellent idea of the appearance of the production(s).