The Fusion of African Masquerades & Music Videos
Join us on a journey to understand the fusion of African masquerades and music videos, and how they continue to celebrate the vibrant cultural traditions of the continent. Most people see masquerades as a single thing or just costumes, a masquerade is always an event. This list we’re putting together here is a part of a collective, it’s an ongoing list.
in alphabetical order
A wise quote from Leopards of the Magical Dawn: Science and the Cosmological Foundations of Igbo Culture, by Nze Chukwukadibia E. Nwafor,
the Ijele Uwa notion further encapsulates the Igbo primal observation that, reality is like a dancing masquerade, and to better experience or appreciate its highly assorted facets, wonders, dimensions, temperaments, aesthetics and opportunities, one must also move around in tune with the mobile inclinations of the masquerade. This they encapsulate as “anaro akwu ofu ebe enene mmonwu” lit. this world is like a dancing masquerade, if you want to see it well, you do not stand in one place.
Recommended Resources:
The Ijele Masked Spirit | Okwu ID
Mmanwu: Igbo Masquerade | Okwu ID
MASQUERADES IN IGBO LAND | Franklin Ugobude (Article)
IGBO MASQUERADE PERFORMANCE AND THE PROBLEM OF ALIEN INTERVENTION: TRANSITION FROM CULT TO THEATRE | Emeka Nwabueze (Article)
Masquerades: Ancestral Spirits, a Dying Art, or Mere Entertainment? | Chimezie Chika (Article)
The Art of Transformation: Igbo Masks | Ugbozo Ozooha-Aga | Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology (Article)
An Igbo Masquerade | Amanda Davis (Article)
Playing With Our Ancestors: Culture and Communal Memory in Igbo Masquerade Theatre | Osita Okagbue | Igbo Conference (YouTube)
Igbo Masquerades (Instagram)