Dances with Spiders
Berghahn Books (Verlag)
978-1-84545-445-6 (ISBN)
For centuries, the rite of the tarantula was the only cure for those ‘bitten’ or ‘possessed’ by the mythic Apulian spider. Its victims had to dance to the local tarantella or ‘pizzica’ for days on end. Today, the pizzica has returned to the limelight, bringing to the forefront issues of performance, gender, identity and well-being. This book explores how and why the pizzica has boomed in the Salento and elsewhere and asks whether this current popu- larity has anything to do with the historic ritual of tarantism or with the intention of recovering well-being. While personal stories and experiences may confirm the latter, a vital shift has appeared in the Salento: from the confrontation of life crises to the vibrant promotion and celebration of a local sense of identity and celebrity.
Karen Lüdtke received her DPhil in Social Anthropology from the University of Oxford. Aspects of her research on the performance arts and well-being in the context of the Salento have been published in the edited volumes Music as Medicine(Ashgate, London) and Performing Ecstasies(Institute for Mediaeval Music, Ottawa).
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgements
Preface
Introduction: Tarantula Territory
Salentine Tarantulas: Spider Dances and Discourses
Tracking Down the Spider: Research Techniques and Intentions
Crisis, Celebrity and Celebration: Contextualizing Salentine Tarantulas
Preview: Summarizing this Book
PART I: PAST AND PRESENT SPIDER WEBS
Chapter 1. Seeking St Paul: Historical and Contemporary Enactments
Dances at Galatina: a Crossroads of Old and New Tarantati
Dances on Screen: Invention versus Intention
Maria’s 1959 Domestic Ritual: a Historical Performance
Ada’s 2001 Dance on TV: a Contemporary Performance
Chapter 2. Webs through Time: Origins and History of Tarantism
Possible Origins: Searching for Tarantism’s Roots
Historical Interpretations: Explaining the Tarantula’s Cult
De Martino’s View: a Key Point of Reference
Recent Studies: Continuing the Quest for Answers
PART II: THE SPIDER'S CULT TODAY
Chapter 3. Curing Myths and Fictive Cures: Views of Believers and Sceptics
Tarantism as Cure: Debates in Favour of the Tarantula
St Paul’s Grotto: a Contested Site
Spider Poisoning: a Contested Case
Tarantism as Fiction: Debates Against the Tarantula
Chapter 4. Ads and Antidotes: Celebrity versus Conservation Taranta-muffin, Techno-pizzica, Tarantavirus: Hybridizing the Pizzica
The Festival of San Rocco: Revitalizing and Commercializing Traditions
La Notte della Taranta: a Music and Media Spectacle
La Sagra dei Curli: a Community Festival
Chapter 5. Sensing Identities and Well-being: Personal Motivations and Experiences
The Alla Bua: Music for Healing
Tanya’s Story: Dancing Colours
Ada’s Story: Retrieving Soundness
PART III: FROM RITUAL TO LIMELIGHT
Chapter 6. SpiderWoMen Transfixed: Negotiating Crisis and Cure
Diagnosing Spiders: Identifying Tarantula Cases
Views on Venom: Interpreting the Spider’s Bite
Tarantula Alternatives: Choosing Treatment Options
Chapter 7. Tarantula Threads and Showbiz Airs: Fine-tuning Performances
Spider Sites: Performance Places
Spider Schedules: Performance Times
Tarantula Threads: Past Props and Techniques
Showbiz Airs: Present Props and Techniques
Chapter 8. SpiderWoMen Transformed: Celebrating Well-being
Magic Circles: Allowing Music to Take Over
Rhythmic Intervention: Choosing to Entrain
Vibrating the Spider’s Web: Tapping a Source of Vitality
Integrating Toxins: Connecting Self and Other
Transforming Identities: Evoking a Sense of Belonging
PART IV: CONCLUSION
Chapter 9. Dancing Beyond Spiders
Evelina’s Story: Living with the Tarantula
Tarantula Rhythms: Reflections on Performance and Well-being
Epilogue
Bibliography
Filmography
Index
| Erscheint lt. Verlag | 1.12.2008 |
|---|---|
| Reihe/Serie | Epistemologies of Healing |
| Verlagsort | Oxford |
| Sprache | englisch |
| Maße | 152 x 229 mm |
| Gewicht | 490 g |
| Themenwelt | Kunst / Musik / Theater ► Musik |
| Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Sport ► Tanzen / Tanzsport | |
| Sozialwissenschaften | |
| ISBN-10 | 1-84545-445-6 / 1845454456 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1-84545-445-6 / 9781845454456 |
| Zustand | Neuware |
| Haben Sie eine Frage zum Produkt? |
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