Public performance on a mass scale is not a single event, but rather an event implanted into day-to-day activities, perhaps for weeks and months, including logistical preparation, rehearsal, costumes and music--all of these must be attended to if the performance is to occur. In such a situation, many areas of the Maya communities must have been used in the staging of performances.
This large platform at Copán is located east of the main plaza, and some researchers believe it may have been used for the preparation, practice or execution of dances for the public.
This large platform at Copán is located east of the main plaza, and some researchers believe it may have been used for the preparation, practice or execution of dances for the public.
- The Role of the Plaza in Maya Festivals, more on the project by Takeshi Inomata
- Copán, a bit more information about the site
- Hieroglyphs and History at Copán, an online book by Harvard University's David Stuart.
- Takeshi Inomata. 2006. Plazas, perfomers and spectators: Political theaters of the Classic Maya. Current Anthropology 47(5):805-842