Contemporary Theatre in Mayan Mexico: Death-Defying Acts (review)

Theatre, Tamara Underiner argues, has a role to play in the ongoing negotiations and reconfigurations of cultural and communal identity taking place in Mayan Mexico. Her study, which examines theatrical activity in Chiapas, Tabasco, and the Yucatan, is situated within a globalized world in which what comes to be designated Mayan theatre is informed and influenced by non-Mayan traditions and practitioners. Her exploration of how these dynamics yield theatrical practices that are simultaneously intercultural and indigenous engagingly challenges assumptions of each of these terms, and places the study of contemporary theatre in Mayan Mexico at the center of several pressing concerns regarding identity, cultural authenticity, and interculturalism in theatrical production.

In an effort to emphasize the inherently transcultural nature of Mayan identity and culture, Underiner begins this study by outlining "the long history of intercultural explorations, collaborations, and impositions experienced by native performers and audiences over time and within the rhetorical spaces created by Mexico's larger struggles for a national identity" (14). Because the meanings generated by contemporary performances are inflected by the history of indigenous people's relationship with the Mexican government, chapter 1 provides historical background on nationalist rhetorics—mestizaje and indigenismo—that have marginalized and oppressed the Maya, as well as the most recent indigenous response, zapatismo.

Two theatre companies based in San Cristóbal, Chiapas, are the subject of chapter 2, "Más que una noticia . . .: Theatre in Chiapas." Here, Underiner discusses the increasing tension resulting from shifting gender-role expectations that has emerged in many Mayan communities, as indigenous women take more active roles in realms of life previously dominated by men. This tension is at the heart of the histories of the two companies she discusses here: Lo'il Maxil and Fortaleza de la Mujer Maya, or Fomma (Strength of the Mayan Woman). Lo'il Maxil, the theatre troupe associated with Sna Jtz'ibajom, a writer's collective dedicated to improving literacy in two Mayan languages, has collectively developed and staged a new play virtually every year since 1989. The company was started in reaction to anthropological interest in Mayan culture and the founders' desire to preserve their communities' stories for future generations. Fomma is more interested in using theatre to articulate the struggles women in indigenous communities continue to face. Founded in 1994 by two women who had been members of Lo'il Maxil, Fomma is not only a theatre company but also a community center that conducts literacy and vocational classes. While Underiner discusses the transformative nature of Fomma's work for its members, I would have liked to know more about its effects on audiences.

Importantly, both groups work with non-Mayan artists and advisers who influence their work in a variety of ways. Underiner notes: "from the beginning, Lo'il Maxil's work, celebrated everywhere as 'Mayan theatre' has been in fact a highly collaborative effort by artists and researchers trained in very different traditions. The performing tradition that is emerging reflects these diverse impulses and influences . . . Most of the plays feature masks and costume devices not traditional to the region" (51–52). Yet, Underiner argues, this influence does not necessarily undermine Lo'il Maxil's identification as a "Mayan" theatre company. Both companies discussed here have negotiated strategies allowing them to gain skills and financial support from non-Mayan sources, but still maintain artistic control.

Laboratorio de Teatro Campesino e Indígena (LTCI), whose work Underiner discusses in chapter 3, is a loose network of theatre troupes that grew out of a program initially aimed at community development, with an emphasis on developing plays with "social and family themes" (81). But, as Underiner describes, the well-known Mexican theatre director hired to spearhead the program, Alicia Martínez Medrano, had other ideas. The goals she set for LTCI included creating a rigorous training program in theatrical techniques and building a theatrical repertoire that has come to include works by well-known Mexican playwrights as well as European classics...