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In 1983, a group of citizens in San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, formed Sna Jtz'ibajom, the Tzotzil-Tzeltal Maya writers' cooperative. In the two decades since, this group has evolved from writing and publishing bilingual booklets to writing and performing plays that have earned them national and international renown. Anthropologist Robert M. Laughlin has been a part of the group since its beginnings, and he offers a unique perspective on its development as a Mayan cultural force. The Monkey Business Theatre, or Teatro Lo'il Maxil, as this branch of Sna Jtz'ibajom calls itself, has presented plays in virtually every corner of the state of Chiapas, as well as in Mexico City, Guatemala, Honduras, Canada, and in many museums and universities in the United States. It has presented to the world, for the first time in drama, a view of the culture of the Mayas of Chiapas. In this work, Laughlin presents a translation of twelve of the plays created by Sna Jtz'ibajom, along with an introduction for each. Half of the plays are based on myths and half on the social, political, and economic problems that have confronted—and continue to confront—the Mayas of Chiapas.
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monkey business theatre Laughlin Book1_R2.indb i 3/13/08 10:45:49 AM the linda schele series in maya and pre-columbian studies The Loafer and the Buzzard, 1977. Photo copyright © Macduff Everton Laughlin Book1_R2.indb ii 3/13/08 10:45:49 AM Monkey Business Theatre by robert m. laughlin and sna jtz’ibajom University of Texas Press Laughlin Book1_R2.indb iii Austin 3/13/08 10:45:53 AM Th is series was made possible through the generosity of william c. nowlin, jr., and bettye h. nowlin, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and various individual donors. copyright © 2008 by the university of texas press All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America First edition, 2008 Requests for permission to reproduce material from this work should be sent to: permissions University of Texas Press p.o. Box 7819 Austin, tx 78713-7819 www.utexas.edu/utpress/about/bpermission.html ∞ The paper used in this book meets the minimum requirements of ansi/niso z39.48-1992 (r1997) (Permanence of Paper). libr ary of congress cataloging-in-publication data Laughlin, Robert M. Monkey Business Theatre / by Robert M. Laughlin and Sna Jtz’ibajom. — 1st ed. p. cm. — (The Linda Schele Series in Maya and pre-Columbian studies) Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 978-0-292-71759-6 (cl. : alk. paper) 1. Tzotzil drama. 2. Tzeltal drama. 3. Puppet theater—Mexico. 4. Mexican drama. 5. Teatro Lo’il Maxil. I. Sna Jtz’ibajom. II. Teatro Lo’il Maxil. III. Title. pm4466.z77l38 2008 897' .428208—dc22 2007046963 Laughlin Book1_R2.indb iv 3/13/08 10:45:54 AM dedicated to the present and past members of sna jtz’ibajom Laughlin Book1_R2.indb v 3/13/08 10:45:54 AM THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK contents foreword: The Visitors’ Question ix by Carter Wilson preface: Recollections of a Ghost xxi by Ralph Lee acknowledgments xxvii pronunciation and translation xxxiv 1 2 3 4 5 6 Looking Back, Looking Forward: In the Beginning 1 Febrero Loco: A Live Theatre in the Making 9 The Theatre on the Road: The Great Adventure 17 Personal and Social Impacts 23 The Immokalee Special: Social Action in Florida 33 The Future 41 the plays The Loafer and the Buzzard 45 Who Believes in Spooks? 59 Deadly Inheritance 75 Jaguar Dynasty 99 Let’s Go to Paradise! 121 From All for All 149 Torches for a New Dawn 173 The Story of Our Roots 197 Workers in the Other World 225 When Corn Was Born 247 Mexico with Us Forever! 261 The World Turned on Its Head 281 appendix 1: Individuals Referred to in the Text 2