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THE ARCHIVE AND THE REPERTOIRE: PERFORMING CULTURAL MEMORY IN THE AMERICAS. By Diana Taylor. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2003. Pp. xx + 326. $79.97 cloth, $22.95 paper.
Diana Taylor's new book promises to spend more time doing performance studies than debating how to define it. Therefore, following an introd uction to key terms and their definitions, it moves quickly into a series of nuanced and sophisticated arguments about a fascinating range of performances past and present from the American hemisphere. The methodology of performance studies, as Taylor explains, looks at paradigms of human events that contain recognizable elements of narrative and plot but that also attend to theatrical elements such as setup and action, as well as to the specifics of social, economic, and political contexts.
The key words in the title-"archive" and "repertoire"-appear to present a dichotomy, yet Taylor argues that these terms function in a dynamic relationship, since each one illuminates and invigorates the other. "Archive" refers to cultural events that are preserved in a permanent manner, such as in writing, photographs, or recorded tapes, and therefore are perceived as stable and unchanging over time. "Repertoire" applies to culture that is embodied in the practices of such events as ritual, dances, or political rallies and that follow a script or scenario,...