“The culture of matchundadi has been the engine of Guinean political life and without the exacerbation and institutionalization of this form of hegemonic masculinity, the juice that has been watering Guinean politics would disappear.

The hypermasculine matchundadi culture moves within the structures of the state, seeking to turn the endemic matchundadi into a systemic matchundadi. In other words, it seeks to institutionalize a modus operandi and a vision of the world in which the law of the strongest, the most powerful and, above all, the most violent, prevails. At the same time, this hypermasculinity translates the characteristics associated with men and masculinities, such as the redistribution of resources, the protection (and enrichment) of their clan and the permanent threat to political opponents. Thus, the culture of matchundadi is highly performative, albeit with consequences that clash with the democratic environment and social peace, since it thrives on political mimicry and is based on the constant confrontation and demonstration of strength by some over others.”
[Joacine Katar Moreira]

Joacine Katar Moreira’s book allows the reader to learn about the contemporary history of Guinea-Bissau, because it develops a fine and sophisticated analysis of how that history was (and still is) organized by one of the primordial processes of all human societies – gender; because it clearly points out one of the central elements, hitherto hidden from any analysis of the Guinean reality, which generates the instability and violence of Guinea-Bissau’s socio-political processes – the forms of hegemonic (hyper)masculinity that monopolize the competition for state power.
[Pedro Vasconcelos]

ed.______, a seal which comprises two collections – “Series” and “Sequence” -, results from the collaboration between the Teatro Praga and the publisher Sistema Solar, with the coordination of  André e. Teodósio and José Maria Vieira Mendes

The “Series” collection discloses the intangible heritage of contemporary performing arts. “Sequence” collection is organised in thematic books from different disciplines, which offer a reflection on systems of power and protest in the present time.

Edition | Teatro Praga / Sistema Solar (chancela ed._______, 2020)
Coordination | José Maria Vieira Mendes e André e. Teodósio
Preface | Pedro Vasconcelos
Design | Horácio Frutuoso
Proofreading | Helena Roldão

+Available for purchase here
+For more information contact producao@teatropraga.com