The intersection between leisure and politics is a consistent feature of African history, and it is a complex, creative intersection that produces and transacts history in dynamic ways. Utilizing ancient transcripts and records of performative cultures, contemporary music, primary and secondary interpretations of African cultural life, this course provides a deep and timely exploration of the fertile intersection between cultural performativity and power from ancient times to the present. Performative cultures are therefore political, and so also are they spiritual, economic and deeply embedded in questions of science and technology.