Academic theater refers to the performance of scholarship for appearances rather than substance. It describes academic activity that mimics the form of rigorous inquiry — papers, talks, titles, committees — but lacks real intellectual or clinical impact.

In other words:

*The imitation of academic productivity, driven by optics, metrics, or politics rather than truth-seeking.*

• Presenting flashy results at conferences with no follow-up or real-world application
• Writing papers to fill a CV, not to change practice or advance understanding
• Using complex jargon to obscure the lack of meaningful insight
• Forming committees or task forces that exist to be seen, not to solve problems

Academic theater is when the form of science survives but its soul is gone.