“This book offers an impressive body of data, brought to life through close reading of Punu song lyrics and careful reconstruction of the performances.” • Koen Stroeken, Ghent University

“This is an important, interesting, and timely contribution to anthropological theory (and performance of anthropology specifically). In the book, I love the idea of tradition referring to the process of ongoing generativity. It’s A productive line of thought that I think will resonate with readers.” • Lauren Miller, Texas Tech University

In rural Punu communities, song and dance are profoundly relational and affective practices, generated ever anew through ritual encounters among humans and with more-than-human beings. In this ethnography, the author immerses the reader into the rhythms of resonance, attunement and amplification that intensify the performances and open pathways to participation into the water spirit world. Following African feminist scholars and Ingold’s anthropology of life, she offers a matrifocal, ontogenetic reading that critically engages with affect theory, advocating for its re-animation.

Series: Volume 18, Dance and Performance Studies

Subject: Performance Studies Anthropology (General)

Area: Africa

BISAC: SOC002010 SOCIAL SCIENCE/Anthropology/Cultural & Social; SOC008010 SOCIAL SCIENCE/Ethnic Studies/African Studies; PER003000 PERFORMING ARTS/Dance/General