"I don't rehearse, because performance art is not about rehearsal; that's what makes it different from theater." Marina Abramovic

And, that may be the only difference.

NY mag's latest piece on The Artist is Present

Intimacy as performance--roles that we take on to please ourselves and our partners. Places of understanding. These are considered our comfort zones where we fearlessly shield connection--therefore connection as a performer is also slightly disconnected? Nothing new, but what can be removed is the unattainable shadow of abstraction surrounding performance. Interaction is perhaps a variable; and regardless of its definition, its presence within performance art and theater are consistent and reflective. An audience will applaud or will stare at you stone faced without any understanding of what might have actually occurred. It seems that an audience reaction is not necessary.

However, this is the difference between intimacy and performance. Interaction must be static to cause exchange, dynamic, and finality. And it appears that expression may exist simultaneously within courage because the advances are based on assumption, repetition, and intuition.

excerpt from cowboy