Kanake Three Act Play Georges Dobbelaere and JeanMarie Tjibaou

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KanakeThree Act PlayGeorges Dobbelaere and
Jean-Marie Tjibaou

• Background Kanake-New Caledonia
• New Caledonia Nouvelle-Calédonie popular names
  Kanaky, Le caillou), is a "sui generis
  collectivity" (in practice an overseas territory)
  of France.
• It is located in the region of Melanesia in the
  southwest Pacific.
• It has a land area of 18,575.5 square kilometres
  (7,172 sq mi). The population was 236,528
  inhabitants as of January 2006 official
  estimates.
• Since 1986 the United Nations Committee on
  Decolonization has included New Caledonia on the
  United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing
  Territories New Caledonia will decide whether to
  remain within the French Republic or become an
  independent state in a referendum sometime after
  2014.
• Source Wikipedia

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Kanak/e-Meanings

• Kanak (formerly also Canaque) are the indigenous
  Melanesian inhabitants of New Caledonia in the
  southwest Pacific.
• The word is derived from kanaka maoli, a Hawaiian
  word which was at one time applied
  indiscriminately by European explorers, traders
  and missionaries in the region to any
  non-European Pacific islander.
• Kanaky is an ethno-political name for the island
  or the entire territory.
• Kanéka is a musical genre associated with the
  Kanak, stylistically a form of reggae.
• Kanakas were Pacific islanders (not just
  Melanesians) who were abducted to perform forced
  labour during the 19th century.

Kanake National Flag
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BackgroundPlaywrights

• Jean-Marie Tjibaou (1936 1989) was involved in
  politics in New Caledonia. During the 1970s, he
  undertook a thesis in ethnology at the Sorbonne.
  While he did not complete his studies, he became
  engaged in cultural and ethnicity issues on New
  Caledonia. In 1975 he arranged the Melanesia 2000
  festival, which emphasized the Kanak identity.
• Tjibaou made his way into politics when he ran
  for the municipal election in Hienghène in 1977,
  where he was appointed mayor of Hienghène. In
  1979 he was made territorial councilor in the
  newly-formed Independence Front. In 1984 he was
  appointed head of the FLNKS and later that year
  also president of the New Caledonian provisional
  government.
• Jean-Marie Tjibaou was assassinated May 4, 1989
  in Ouvéa.
• Source Wikipedia

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Kanake-Three Act Play

• Act One 1-The Boenando
• Traditional Method of Introduction-The Herald
• Calling in of the Clans-Traditional Exposition of
  Conflict as Basis of the Play.
• In this case a society- Where the CENTRE
  POST-What holds society together-has collapsed.
• Thunder (Sea/Day/Night)
• -Palako Fowl (Fertility)
• -Doui Shark (4 Homes at Sea)
• -Wind(Death/Burial)
• -Lizard (Yam-Life)
• -Kuni (Fruit-Womb-Life)
• (-Striped Blue and Black Snake (Destiny-Feeds the
  Dead)

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ACT 1 2 Feast and Sacrifice

• Herald gives way to Master of Ceremonies.
• Feast-Sacrifice-Yams-Life Metaphor for Dead-
  Death of Society/Boendando
• Healing-Transformation-Unity

ACT 1 3 Enter the AVI-Servants of Death

• AVI-Guardians of the Mourning/Servants of the
  Dead
• Ascetics Link between living and
  dead-Natural/Supernatural Worlds.

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ACT 1 4 Initiates Enter

• Entrance of Kanake Main Character
• Ti- Javelin like spear- Pole of Life
• Karoti- Pole of Death
• Manhood-Phallic Symbol of Life/Procreation

ACT 1 5 War Dances

• AVI-Guardians of the Mourning/Servants of the
  Dead
• Ascetics Link between living and
  dead-Natural/Supernatural Worlds.

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ACT 1 6-7-8 Dance of Poeti/ Ti Game/Cinyi Game

• Dance for Unity/Assurance/Affirmation of Society
• Traditional Games of TI/CINYI related to wars-as
  a means of practicing culture/warfare

ACT 1 9/10/11/12 Genealogies/Jedo/Skirts/Boria
Dance

• GENEALOGY-Presentation of Kanake-as
  Future/Saviour Who Recites his Genealogy
• Jedo Maternals-Women Relatives Dance
  Ritual of Expressing Control/Power over Men
• The Skirts Call to AVI to move from pathway of
  death to pathway of life AVI move under skirts
  to womb
• Boria- Dance unification of maternal/paternal
  families-metaphor of Kanake Unity.
• Herald- Traditional interaction with audience-
  calls them to attention

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ACT 2 1 The Conquest13/14 The Drums/The
Sharing

• The Drums Signals Intrusion by Soldiers/ New
  Flags
• The Sharing Outlines the methods of Conquest of
  Colonies and Sharing among Captain/Trader/Missiona
  ry
• Missionary (breaks down their functions) Army
  Pacification. Missionary Spiritual
  mission-Civilisation only then You will be
  able to sell them your goods.
• Captain Trading posts are being set up,
  churches are being built, a new colony is born.

ACT 2 15 The Mission Dresses

• Missionary Call to Renounce Heathenism
• Ideas of Salvation/Redemption
• Dresses for Initial Purification Mission
  Dresses- The Basis for Mumu dress or Mother
  Hubbard Dresses or Mission Dresses.

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ACT 2 16 Kapo and Kanake First Pas Deux

• Kanake releases Kapo from her captive dress
  metaphor for freedom
• Dash into Forest, stopped by drum rolls-role of
  being the captive colonised

ACT 2 17 Kanakes Revolt

• Shows process of forced labor/plantation system
• System of labor/shift work-infrastructure-roads
  to ease colonisation process
• Resistance is met with more force until even
  Kanake is subdued

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ACT 2 18/19/20 Forced Labour/The Mirrors/Alcohol

• Trader Pleasures of Civilisation. Debt / Credit
  of Labor / Wages / Goods
• Shows off trinkets- Musical Cigar Box/Can
  Opener/Trinkets for women.
• Mirrors-Thats civilisation
• Alcohol Happiness Leads to Scenes of
  Violence/Despair

ACT 2 21 Kapo and Kanake Second Pas de Deux

• Humiliation of Kapo as prostitute
• She no longer accepts Kanakes Help
• There is a feeling of the complete humiliation of
  Kapo / Kanake from their traditional nobility.

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ACT 3 The Sharing of the Yams22 -The Awakening

• Master of Ceremony Summarises the past
• Three orators- past glory, exaltation of chosen
  chief, future victories.
• Our Present Blind Walk into the Night.

ACT 3 23/24 The Sandalwood Traders/Plea for the
Future

• Kanake-Speech on Unfair exchanges of resources
  /land/lifes/Gods for Civilisation/Christianity
• Are your sure that in a hundred years the planet
  that you dominate will be happier that our island
  was when you conquered it.
• The White Man asks for reconciliation of the past
  towards a common future- a sharing of two
  cultures/history.

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ACT 3 25 Reception of the Guests/Presents

• MOC- Links the present reconciliation to the one
  being held under the Boendando -
  Healing-Transformation-Unity
• There is a call for those still disgruntled to
  join them
• Images of Positive Contributions of European
  Civilisation

ACT 3 27/28 Sharing Yams/ Taking out the Karoti

• The Sharing of Yams (LIFE) signifies a common
  society among all people in New Caledonia
  brotherly exchangeFirst Yam- Art/Rites/Rituals
  Second Yam- Beauty of our Islands. Third Yam-
  Buried- Natural Resources-Mines.
• Pulling out of Karoti- Symbolic of removal of
  prejudice/discord.
• Play comes a full circle-from the pre-contact
  rituals of unity to those of the present.