Diplomacy as Theatrical Performance

Negotiation is staged as public theater: Ferengi ostentation, Devinoni Ral's focused gaze and rhetorical shutdowns, and tactical screen‑muting convert an otherwise procedural forum into a spectacle. The story shows how theatricality shapes perceived legitimacy, pressures decision-makers, and can instrumentalize third parties (including Troi), turning ethics into audience management and revealing the political power of performance.