Masquerade Performance and the Urban Crowd

Abstract

Masquerades once performed in village squares now process through crowded city streets, filmed on dozens of phones. Drawing on fieldwork at festivals in Enugu and Nsukka, this article examines how urban audiences reshape masquerade performance, from route and timing to costume. It argues that the masquerade has adapted to the city by becoming a spectacle of circulation, both on the street and online.