Music and Dance in Community Folk Play Performance Culture: An Example of Ebira-Mattaga Players in Nigeria
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Date
2020
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Publisher
EDE: Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences
Abstract
The representational application of
music and dance in drama and theatre
performance is a common practice in places
where oral culture thrives, especially in
Africa. In Nigeria, music and dance
constitute an integral part of indigenous
drama and theatrical performances. Thus,
application of music and dance in folk play
performance usually represents a people’s
past and present experiences and sociocultural
values by which they live. Ebira
people, otherwise known as Anebira of
central Nigeria usually employ significant
use of music and dance in both ritual and
recreational theatre and play performances
to deliver messages of great moral values.
This paper explores the functional
aspect of the Ebira theatre as tool for social
and cultural development. It argues that the
music and dance aspect of the performance,
enable Ebira-Mattaga players to create
awareness, mobilize, as well as educate the
people about destructive practices and vices
that can cause decay within the society. The
performance is geared towards the sanitation
of the society
Description
Keywords
Dance, Music, Play, Ebira, Mattaga Theatre