Staging Rebellion: The Plays of Yulisa Amadu Maddy

Abstract

Sierra Leonean dramatist Yulisa Amadu Maddy is one of the most radical voices on the West African stage, both in terms of the iconoclastic political orientation of his work and in terms of its dramaturgy. As Julian Spencer points out, “He has made a powerful impact in the theatre in Sierra Leone, as well as in other African countries” (Spencer, 99). To date, however, Maddy ‘s plays have received virtually no critical attention beyond brief notes in reference texts on African literature and reviews of stage performances. The present paper offers a detailed critical analysis of seven of Maddy’s’ plays, with particular emphasis on the interface between theme and dramaturgy. It argues that Maddy‘s work is most successful when the radical tendencies of the latter are matched by a significant level of seriousness in the former, and least successful when the convention-defying actions of Maddy ‘s characters fail to resonate beyond the level of theatrical rhetoric.