The Solemn and the Carnivalesque of Mística
Performances
Debates and discussions on cultural policies during
the National Week of Brazilian Culture and Agrarian Reform organized by the MST
and held om March 19 to 24, 2002 in Rio de Janeiro were opened by performative
rituals known in the MST as mística. These performances range
from carnavalesque celebrations of popular culture and denunciations of the
culture industry to solemn homage to the heroic role of individuals and families
in the transformation of Brazilian society. The forum was also a showcase for
live music, including forró, puppet theater known as
mamulengo, and traditional preparation of foods such as manioc flour
and tapioca cakes.
Else R P Vieira
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