Kwagh-Hir theatre is a performing art form, specific to the Tiv people, which combines visual stimulation and cultural enlightenment into one performance. The Tiv society is characterized by fraternal cooperation between age mates rather than authoritative chieftaincy, which has historically made them famous as the greatest democrats in Africa.
According to a myth, Kwagh-hir originated from the Tiv way of telling stories called 'kwagh-alom', in which families would gather in the early hours of the night to listen to creative storytellers tell their stories, usually as the family mowed the lawn after a long day of farming. It wasn't long ago that creative storytellers began to dramatize these stories, resulting in what we are familiar with as Kwagh-hir today. It is used by the Tiv people to communicate beliefs, educate and inform their society.
A social practice such as this is one that entertains audience members as well as teaches moral lessons through the dramatization and performance of social realities, past as well as the present. The Tiv People's reality is articulated through the use of puppetry, masquerading, poetry, music, dance, and animated narratives as part of Kwagh-hir, a form of total theatre presentation. Using creative dramatization, people's struggles, aspirations, successes, and failures are all portrayed and give voice to their individual experiences. The Khwagh-hir theatre is owned and operated by the community, and knowledge and skills are being transmitted through apprenticeships. Each person in the entire community is assigned a role that is relevant to them. In the Ter-u-Kwagh-Hir group, an elderly man tends to be the leader, serving the role of a father to the Ter-u-Kwagh-Hir group. In this role, he is responsible for organizing the group, settling conflicts, and enforcing the rules.
Those who show an interest in the troupe's activities are trained and mentored until they reach a certain level of competence in the activities. Individuals who accomplish this are invited to become members of the troupe. To maintain the art and to ensure that the younger generation continues to identify with it, regular performances are held in order to ensure that the art is kept alive.
References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwagh-Hir
https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/kwagh-hir-theatrical-performance-00683
https://raifilm.org.uk/films/kwagh-hir/