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Short abstract:

Science festivals are an emblematic manifestation of the way in which science becomes an ingredient for performances such as theatre, dance, music, games, where science adapts to the realities of popular culture and where knowledge and play are intertwined.

Long abstract:

Science festivals are an emblematic manifestation of the way in which science becomes an ingredient for performances related to the show industry, such as theatre, dance, music, games, where science adapts to the realities of popular culture. Bringing the traditional popular science conference for the wide public into a new register, the festival functions as an incubator for a great range of science events that intertwine knowledge and play. These scientific shows are introduced in a popular circuit which covers a wide spectrum of events that extends science into a domain which culminates with an appearance of carnival. Entertainment competes with scientific information, and profit is pursued as much as the promotion of science. The large number of visitors who pay admission tickets to attend science festivals demonstrates that science is transformed into a commodity for consumption, as much as a way of engagement. And the commodification of science is possible through a process of negotiation between actors who dispute their territories in the transmedial web of popular science, mediated by science communicators. This paper aims to analyse how the events proposed by the ”World Science Festival” contribute to the harmonization of the interests of these actors – scientists, communicators, artists, the public –, achieved through concessions made by all sides, and lead to a wider support network for the scientific process, with obvious benefits. The entire endeavour is edified under the guidance of professional science communicators by transferring science into the register of play and entertainment.