Masked performances: navigating categorizations in Papua New Guinea

I propose to present a case study of masked performances, in the islands region of Papua New Guinea, in situations of national and global contact. This includes performances at mask festivals, for national independence day, in touristic situations, for the opening of institutions and to greet NGO leaders.

It has been noted that, within a country with hundreds of different ethnic groups, only a few are making a name for themselves in these contexts. Indeed, who is chosen to perform on the occasions mentioned above depends on their position in a multitude of categories and how they have been able to navigate these. What is at stake is membership in middle class society and membership in a 'contemporary' global world. Not everyone can acquire these memberships, who can is based on how they manage to navigate the categories available to them. These categories are the result of the local contexts from which the practices are emerging, how these local contexts have been affected by a history of colonial contact, and international understandings of and approaches to indigeneity. All of these categories serve to create possibilities for social realities and to legitimate (or to solidify) paths already taken.

I look at those who find themselves, through categorical luck and strategy, to be in positions of power. These are generally men, and men who are members of ethnic groups that have become prominent among the educated middle class, exemplified by the case of the Tolai and their renown for performing the Tubuan (dance and mask). I also look at those who have been left behind by the luck of categorization. This is particularly the case of women, traditionally excluded from the performance of masks. A cultural arena where traditional exclusion is now leading to an exclusion when it comes to the performance of indigeneity, meaning an exclusion from the opportunities that this performance opens up. Through the study of masked performances, I examine how individuals at various hierarchical levels navigate the categories currently available to them, and in the process shape the categories themselves.