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A performance, in performing arts, generally comprises an event in which one group of people (the performer or performers) behave in a particular way for another group of people (the audience). Sometimes the dividing line between performer and the audience may become blurred, as in the example of "participatory theatre" where audience members might get involved in the production.

Performances, for example in theatre, can take place daily, or at some other regular interval.

A street concert is a performance in a public place (also known as busking), given by one or more street musicians. The audience often consists of members of public who happen to pass by. Such performers do not require payment, but do welcome it. See also extended technique.

Cold reading is a technique used by salespeople, interrogators, hypnotists, psychics, psychologists, graphologists, palmists, astrologers, con men and others to convince another person that they know more about them than they actually do.

Even without prior knowledge of a given person, a cold reader could still quickly obtain a great deal of his subject by carefully analysing his or her clothing or fashion, hairstyle, gender, religion, race or ethnicity, education level, manner of speech, and place of origin. This is called profiling.

Cold reading is sometimes not intended to defraud or deceive. Former New Age practitioner Karla McLaren said, "I didn't understand that I had long used a form of cold reading in my own work! I was never taught cold reading and I never intended to defraud anyone — I simply picked up the technique through cultural osmosis."

Performers such as Ian Rowland, Mark Edward, Lynne Kelly, Kari Coleman and Derren Brown have posed as psychics offering either private fortune-telling sessions or open forum "talking with the dead" sessions in the manner of alleged psychic John Edward. Only after receiving acclaim and applause do they reveal that they needed no psychic power for the performance, only a knowledge of psychology and cold-reading. Similarly, in an episode of his Trick of the Mind series broadcast in March 2006, Derren Brown demonstrated how people can be influenced through cold reading techniques by repeating the famous experiment in 1948, by psychologist Bertram R. Forer.

Before starting the actual reading, the reader will typically try to elicit cooperation, saying something like, "I often see images that are a bit unclear and which may sometimes mean more to you than to me; if you help, we can together uncover new things about you."

The reader will then ask a number of questions, typically using variations of the methods noted below. The subject will typically reveal some information with their replies, and the cold reader can continue from there, pursuing promising lines of inquiry and abandoning unproductive ones. In general, while some of the information comes from the reader, most of the facts and statements come from the subject, and are then refined and restated by the reader.

Even very subtle cues such as changes in facial expression or body language can indicate if a particular line of questioning is effective or not.

Combining the techniques of cold reading with information obtained covertly is called "hot reading".