Street performing has become a commonplace practice in most city centres of European metropolises. Although there have been attempts to regulate such practices, these have been varied, and street performing remains mostly informal in some countries. In street performing, or busking, artists perform their acts on the street, receiving donations from passersby who stop to contemplate the performance. Albeit informal, street performing is an organized activity in affluent sites where artists have to compete for space and time on the street.

Moreover, street performers must negotiate space and time with formal activities that take place in city centres such as high street retail. On one hand, the artistic practices of street performers have certain necessities in terms of space and materialities. On the other hand, formal agents may wish to attract or repel street performers as they perceive their activities are beneficial or prejudicial for their business. Communication in these negotiations is usually complicated, often involving third-parties, ephemeral tactics, or micro-aggressions.

Despite this, street performers contribute toward the economy of attention in city centres. It has been argued that, in a context of the experience economy, the captivation of the consumer’s attention has become the main focus of firms who intend to provide meaningful experiences to consumers.  Due to the high levels of marketing competition, methods for capturing the attention of consumers are being thoroughly explored by firms and academics, to the point that some authors speak of the existence of economies of attention.

In this paper, we will approach these issues through an exploration of street performance in Chiado, an area in the city centre of Lisbon with a high density of retail and cultural facilities aimed for tourism and consumption. Our objective is to understand the relations between street performers, retailers, cultural agents, and property owners. The fieldwork we have conducted includes field surveys, interviews, and a geoethnography of the urban rhythms of Chiado. This paper will be divided into third sections. First, we will reflect on the nexus between formality and informality in the urban economy, and between urban economy and the attention economy. Secondly, we will present a cartography of the activities in Chiado, including street performances, retail and services, and cultural institutions. Thirdly, we will address the relations between the various agents, focusing on their perceptions of the role that street performances play in Chiado.