The Kwagh-hir Theater: A Weapon for Social Action

by Iyorwuese Hagher

Overview

The Kwagh-hir Theater: A Weapon for Social Action represents a significant milestone in the documentation and theorization of non-Western theater. The book describes how the Tiv people of Nigeria used their indigenous theater to fight against British colonialism and oppression by dominant groups in Nigeria. It celebrates the power of the theater to give voice to the voiceless and to become a catalyst for positive change.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780761862499
Publisher:	University Press of America
Publication date:	11/14/2013
Pages:	286
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Iyorwuese Hagher is a professor of theater and drama and former chair of the Department of Theater and Communications Arts at the University of Jos. A scholar, diplomat, and activist, he was Nigeria’s ambassador to Mexico, the high commissioner to Canada, and a former Nigerian senator and minister. He is also a playwright, poet, and the founder and head of the African Leadership Institute in Dayton, Ohio.

Table of Contents

A Foreword and a Celebration
Preface
Introduction: The Theater as a Weapon
Chapter One: Tiv Worldview; the Context of the Kwagh-hir
Chapter Two: Searching for the Rubrics
Chapter Three: Organization and Form
Chapter Four: Kwagh-hir Aesthetics
Chapter Five: Kwagh-hir as Model Theater for Social Action
Appendix A: Tiv Kwagh-Hir Carvers and Their Works
Appendix B: Glossary of Tiv Words
Bibliography
Index

Editorial Reviews

The authenticity of this book is the result of a combination of lived experience and rigorous research that has spanned over three decades. It is a unique book that will continue to be an asset to scholars and students of culture, and especially for those who want to understand the interface between culture, voice and change.

Oga Steve Abah

Professor Hagher reveals and analyses these theatrical performances with keen insight and deep knowledge. A wonderful addition to the literature on African masquerade and theater.

Herbert Skip Cole

Hagher’s trenchant defence of the Kwagh-hir’s collective capacity for community well-being and social change makes this study important and highly significant for practitioners of applied theater in the globalized twenty-first century.

Michael Etherton

This book is an occasion for anyone who cares about theater, scholarship, and cultural survival.

Don Rubin