Events in the City Using public spaces as event venues

• Main Author: Smith, Andrew 1975 June 25- (Author)
• Format: Book
• Language: English
• Published: Abingdon, Oxon New York, NY Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group 2016
• Series: Routledge advances in event research series
• Subjects: Special events > Management; Public spaces
• Online Access: Click Here to View Status and Holdings.
• Physical Description: xi, 203 pages illustrations 24 cm
• Bibliography: Includes bibliographical references and index
• ISBN: 9781138788855; 1138788856

Cities are staging more events than ever. Within this macro-trend, there is another less acknowledged trend: more events are being staged in public spaces. Some events have always been staged in parks, streets and squares, but in recent years events have been taken out of traditional venues and staged in prominent urban spaces. This is favoured by organisers seeking more memorable and more spectacular events, but also by authorities who want to animate urban space and make it more visible. This book explains these trends and outlines the implications for public spaces. Events play a positive role in our cities, but turning public spaces into venues is often controversial. Events can denigrate as well as animate city space; they are part of the commercialisation, privatisation and securitisation of public space noted by commentators in recent years. The book focuses on examples from London in particular, but it also covers a range of other cities from the developed world. Events at different scales are addressed and, there is dedicated coverage of sports events and cultural events. This topical and timely volume provides valuable material for higher level students, researchers and academics from events studies, urban studies and development studies.