Jola kumpo masquerade as the more-than-human

Kumpo masquerades reside in sacred forests in The Gambia and Senegal. These masquerades, supported by the indigenous Jola ecosophy, challenge anthropocentric privilege by presenting their spiritual power as the more-than-human and demand reverence and fear from their onlookers. By negating human agency, the masquerade demands the community to submit to agents of the spiritual world. I argue that the kumpo masquerade serves as a spiritual intermediary, illustrating the intricate connections between the natural, spiritual and cultural realm that the Jola ecosophy cultivates. Using examples from their performance dramaturgy, I propose kumpo masquerades as the more-than-human in performance.