Power and Performance: Ethnographic Explorations through Proverbial Wisdom and Theater in Shaba, Zaire (New Directions in Anthropological Writing)

In 1985 The Distinguished Anthropologist, Johannes Fabian, While Engaged In Fieldwork In The Shaba Province Of Zaire, First Encountered This Saying. Its Implications -- For The Charismatic Religious Movements Fabian Was Examining, For The Highly Charged Political Atmosphere Of Zaire, And For The Cultures Of The Luba Peoples -- Continued To Intrigue Him, Though Its Meaning Remained Elusive. On A Later Visit, He Mentioned The Saying To A Company Of Popular Actors, And Triggered An Ethnographic Brainstorm. Power And Performance Examines Traditional Proverbs About Power As It Illustrates How The Performance Of Le Pouvoir Se Mange Entier Was Created, Rehearsed, And Performed By The Troupe Theatrale Mufwankolo. The Play Deals With The Issue Of Power Through A Series Of Conflicts Between Villagers And Their Chief. Both Rehearsal And Performance Versions Of The Text Of This Drama Are Included, In Swahili And In English Translation. Reflections On Ethnography -- Discovery: From Informative To Performative Ethnography -- Performance: Some Uses In And Around Anthropology -- Some Ideas Guiding This Study -- Moving Ahead: Performance And Survival -- The Problem: Power And Cultural Axiom -- Of Power And Chicken Gizzards -- The Missing Proverb -- Power And Lore: Some Elements In Luba Culture -- Cultural Axioms And Performance -- The Experimenters -- The Troupe Theatrale Mufwankolo: First Encounter And Some History -- Popular Theater In Shaba: Settings And Contexts -- The Experiment -- The Setting: Glimpses Of Power And Play -- The Work: A Chronological Account Of The Rehearsal Process -- The Play: Dress Rehearsal And Shooting Le Pouvoir Se Mange Entier -- Interlude: The Missing Text -- Ethnographic Texts As Protocols -- Protocols Of What? -- Remarks And Apologies On Transcription And Translation -- Plot And Players -- From Saying To Play: Developing A Plot -- Power Is Eaten Whole: Bwana Cheko's Version (text 1) -- Power Is Eaten Whole: Mufwankolo's Version (text 2) -- The Players -- Scene 1: The Law Of The Land -- Introductory Song: Rehearsal Version (text 3) -- Last Directions (text 4) -- Announcing The Chief: Rehearsal Version (text 5) -- The Chief's Speech: Rehearsal Version (text 6) -- Directions For The Chief's Departure (text 7) -- Announcing The Chief: Final Version (text 8) -- The Chief's Speech: Final Version (text 9) -- Scene 2: Trouble Brewing -- Contesting The Chief: Rehearsal Version (text 10) -- Contesting The Chief: Final Version (fragments: Text 11). Johannes Fabian. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 293-305) And Index.