A recital is a performance where musicians, dancers, or other artists show what they've learned and practiced, usually in front of an audience of family and friends. If you take piano lessons, your teacher might organize a recital where you and other students each play a piece you've been working on. Dance students have recitals where they perform the routines they've rehearsed all year.

Recitals are often different from concerts or competitions. At a concert, professional performers entertain an audience. At a competition, people are judged and ranked. At many recitals, students demonstrate their skills and progress. The goal usually isn't to win but to share what you've accomplished and experience performing in front of others.

The word can also mean saying something from memory, like when you give a recitation of a poem you memorized.

Recitals can feel nerve-wracking because you're performing alone, not as part of a group. Your hands might shake during your first piano recital, or you might forget your steps at a dance recital. But recitals can teach you to perform under pressure, a skill that can be useful in many parts of life. Many adults remember their childhood recitals as moments when they learned to manage nervousness and trust their preparation.