De almas asesinadas a espíritus vivos: Embodied Liberation and Community Reimagining Through Afro-Diasporic Performance

Abstract

This thesis explores Black performance in Cuba, Brazil, Panama, and Puerto Rico as a manifestation of the “double being.” This concept posits that Black subjectivity exists at the intersection of a “murdered soul” burdened by the historical trauma of slavery, and a “living spirit” pulsing with resistance and healing. Drawing on artistic practices like music, dance, and poetry within Afro-descendant communities, this thesis argues that performance serves as a powerful tool for liberation and community reimagination. Performances create a space for the “living spirit” to emerge, fostering emotional release, social bonding, and a sense of belonging for descendants of enslaved people. Ultimately, it contends that Black performance, as it allows the “living spirit” to transcend the limitations of the “murdered soul,” offers a pathway to liberation for all communities impacted by the “afterlife of slavery.” In addition to a poetic analysis, this thesis explored an embodied performance, El ritmo que nos libre: Das almas assassinadas aos espíritos vivos which took place in the Lewis Arts Complex during March 2024. Roughly 100 participants, ages ranging from four to seventy-three, were immersed in this diasporic installation. Native languages varied amongst attendees but included the following: Spanish, English, Portuguese, French, Haitian Creole and Patois. Through rhythmic expression, Black performance envisions a future where the Black body finds strength and unity, empowered to breathe freely and imagine genuine equity.