Podcast blurb: Communitas, a term coined by Turner (1969), refers to the feeling of heightened solidarity which is produced during liminal moments of ritual, in which people step outside their prescribed social roles. At events specifically, communitas occurs as a result of the social connectedness, intense community spirit and atmosphere of social equality, sharing, intimacy and togetherness that is produced. Alyssa and Mike discuss the concept of communitas at events, examining what it is, why it is important, how it has evolved over recent years, and what there is to come in the future.

Alyssa’s bio: Dr Alyssa Eve Brown is Senior Lecturer in Tourism and Events, the Programme Leader for BA (Hons) Events Management, and the Event Coordinator for the Centre for Research in Tourism Excellence (CERTE) at the University of Sunderland, UK. She holds a doctorate (PhD) in the festivalgoer experience at UK music festivals. Her research interests include event experience; consumer behaviour; social inclusion; music, alternative and niche events; service quality; and social media.

Further reading and resources:

Turner, V., (2004). Liminality and communitas. In Bail, H. The performance studies reader, pp.89-97.

Turner, V., Abrahams, R.D. and Harris, A., (2017). The ritual process: Structure and anti-structure. Routledge.

Brown, A.E. (2023). Co-creation and Engagement: What festivalgoers want in the UK Rock festival experience. Event Management, 27(2), 201-216. https://doi.org/10.3727/152599521X16367300695690

Brown, A.E. (2022). Is it just the music?: understanding the atmosphere in festivalgoers experience at British rock music festivals. In R. Sharpley (Eds.), Routledge Handbook of the Tourist Experience (pp. 301-214), Routledge.

Brown, A.E., Donne, K., Fallon, P., & Sharpley, R. (2020). From headliners to hangovers: Digital media communication in the British rock music festival experience. Tourist Studies, 20(1), 75-95. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468797619885954

Marshall, H., Johnson, J., & Brown, A.E. (2023). Going alone: The experience of solo eventgoers at music events in the UK, Event Management, 27(4), 591-606. https://doi.org/10.3727/152599522X16419948695260

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1975). Beyond boredom and anxiety. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Csikszentmihalyi, M., & Csikszentmihalyi, L. (Eds.). (1988). Optimal experience: Psychological studies of flow in consciousness. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Jahn, S., Cornwell, T.B., Drengner, J. and Gaus, H., (2018). Temporary communitas and willingness to return to events. Journal of Business Research, 92, pp.329-338.

Vandenberg, F., Berghman, M. and Schaap, J., (2021). The ‘lonely raver’: music livestreams during COVID-19 as a hotline to collective consciousness?. European Societies, 23(sup1), pp.S141-S152.

Davis, L., & Gibbons, T. (2023). ‘We can’t participate like this at football, can we’? Exploring in-person performative prosumer fandom at live PDC darts events. Journal of Consumer Culture, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/14695405231168971

Jepson, A. and Clarke, A., (2014). Exploring community festivals and events. Routledge.

Kirby, S.I. and Duignan, M.B., (2020). Searching for Sites of Liminality in Giga-Events. Liminality and Critical Event Studies: Borders, Boundaries, and Contestation, pp.99-118.

MacKay, K., Barbe, D., Van Winkle, C.M. and Halpenny, E., (2017). Social media activity in a festival context: Temporal and content analysis. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 29(2), pp.669-689.

Van Winkle, C.M., Woosnam, K.M. and Mohammed, A.M., (2013). Sense of community and festival attendance. Event Management, 17(2), pp.155-163.

Van Winkle, C. M and Woosnam, K.M,. (2014). Sense of community and perceptions of festival social impacts. International Journal of Event and Festival Management, 5(1), pp.22-38.