A THEATRICAL PERFORMANCE AT WALl'I 629 



little doubt that they represent the Corn Maids who are like- 

 wise represented by the two fii^urines. 



All these acts, given for the instruction or amusement of 

 spectators, are symbolic dramatic representations of events in 

 the cultural history or life of the Hopi, especially those re- 

 counted in the legends of their clans. They are rude mj'stery 

 plays of a religious nature — developments from archaic cere- 

 monies which have come to have a secular as well as religious 

 use. While affording entertainment, which the Hopi greatly 

 enjoy, they instruct the spectators in the mysteries of religion, 

 as the Hopi regard this sentiment. 



This theatrical performance is typical of an almost universal 

 stage in the development of the drama among primitive people, 

 which can likewise be detected in the early history of cultured 

 races. The evolution of the drama is somewhat as follows : In 

 the earliest stages the actors personated gods, and their perform- 

 ances were practically ceremonies. The actors, in time, were 

 replaced by dummies, or idols were substituted for human 

 actors. These inanimate objects or substitutes bore the same 

 symbolic marks, and were regarded with the same reverence 

 as the living actors. When the artistic power of expression 

 was weak these idols were little more than rude images, stocks, 

 or stones, but as it became stronger they became more life- 

 like. The image representing the god in course of time usurped 

 the place of the god in the mind of the worshipper, resulting 

 in pure idolatry. In the Great Serpent exhibition, both men 

 personating gods and symbolic images, pictures, and other rep- 

 resentations are employed. The symbols are archaic and the 

 performances with them are partly ceremonial, but so complex 

 is their development along theatrical lines that they may be 

 designated dramatizations. 



