All the World's a Stage: The Nineteenth Century Kwakwaka'wakw (Kwakiutl) House as Theater
Abstract
Auf den Brettern, die die Welt bedeuten. -Schiller The Huxwhukw’s voice is heard all over the world. Assemble at your places dancers! at the edge of the world. -Kwakwaka’wakw Song INTRODUCTION This paper is a preliminary investigation into the semiotics of space used in the theater formulation of the Kwak’wala-speaking Kwakwaka’wakw of the Pacific Northwest as seen by Franz Boas at the end of the nineteenth century. For these people, the potlatch and its affiliated exhibitions functioned as both theatrical venue and core of artistic expression. It is in the performances that masks and other artistic statements of social prerogative are displayed and validated. Through the structure, space, location, and decoration of their theaters, the Kwakwaka’wakw made culturally significant statements concerning individuals, family, and community. By means of the ”stage,” these people both defined and influenced their social identity and position. Semiotics provides a mechanism by which we can elucidate the formulations utilized in the theatrical communication of these messages.