Urgent, penetrating, moving. Another masterwork from a master thinker -- Ian Bostridge, author of Song and Self: A Singers Reflections on Music and Performance A masterpiece from one of the most important cultural theorists of our time. The Performer is, at once, a memoir, an investigation, a sociological treatise, and a manifesto for rethinking humanity's next act -- Eric Klinenberg, Helen Gould Shepard Professor in the Social Sciences, New York University Richard Sennett calls on his vast knowledge of theater and performance to argue for the social uses of civilityand against the degradation of public social space brought by demagogues such as Donald Trump. This is a book that ranges widely while speaking forcefully to our current needs. -- Peter Brooks, Yale University