Entertainment is a leisure activity consisting of an event and an audience that views the event and participates. This participation can be subtle, as in Theatres: Film, Opera or stageshows, or Orchestral symphony concerts wherein the applause due the performance or performing artists would be bad manners. In contrast, the sports entertainment industry feeds off audience participation— who can imagine the strange event attending a pro-wrestling bout, basketball or baseball game without cheering or booing the participants would experentially being happy.

The industry that provides entertainment is called the entertainment industry, and one distinction between what is meant by the term is the voluntary participation of the party being entertained, which may be passive (Opera) or active (Frantic shoot-em-up computer games) and the whole gamut of industry supported diversions in between (Baseball, Concerts, Football, Books, Television, film , striptease, and events like Karaoke).

Recreation, play, reading, and art appreciation may in some instances be confused with entertainment, but the difference is elementary—entertainments take two or more— even if one of the participants is a programmer for the obsolescent Amiga computer system who now happens to be deceased. Without the 'performance' of the artist and the participation of the viewer the event would and could not occur.

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BBC News | Entertainment | UK Edition

Greatest day for Take That singer
Sat, 07 Nov 2009 23:35:09 -0000
Take That singer Mark Owen is expected to marry his fiancée Emma Ferguson at Highland village's parish church later.
Jackson's father seeks allowance
Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:45:13 -0000
Joe Jackson asks for an allowance from the estate of his late son Michael, saying the star supported him before he died.
Sadler's Wells role for Phillips
Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:12:14 -0000
Former Strictly Come Dancing judge Arlene Phillips is to become a director of Sadler's Wells dance theatre.
Street star questioned over crash
Sat, 07 Nov 2009 10:22:08 -0000
Police quiz Coronation Street actor Ryan Thomas over a car crash which took place in Manchester city centre.
Aretha to perform at Motown gala
Sat, 07 Nov 2009 12:12:00 -0000
Aretha Franklin and Stevie Wonder are among the musicians set to perform at a special concert for the US record label.
Beatles tracks pulled off US site
Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:02:15 -0000
EMI wins an injunction against a US website which it claims was selling Beatles songs without permission.

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