Theatre
Le Commandant Chaka
Not translated into English
Baba Moustapha · 1983
Synopsis
In a country under military dictatorship, a mysterious and popular figure defies the regime: Commander Chaka, the code name of a rebel whom no one manages to catch. To lay hands on this elusive man, a young officer steps in. The play, in five tableaux, targets through military dictatorships all authoritarian powers, and takes for the name of its rebel the figure of the Zulu king Chaka, often transposed in African literature.
Context
The play, which received the special jury prize at the eleventh inter-African theatre competition, was published in 1983, a year after its author's death, by Hatier, in Paris, as number 19 in the Monde noir poche series; a history of Chadian literature also mentions an edition published by Clé, in Yaoundé. It appeared under the regime of Hissène Habré, and critics read in it an allusion to the revolutions that followed independence, in which opportunists were hiding. Hatier reissued it in 1991 with a publisher from Abidjan.
Who it is for
A short play in five tableaux, in French; it can be read without knowing anything about the history of Chad.
Prizes and reception
It is regarded as its author's best work, and a theatre company now bears his name.
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