Prologue : the red blood of Cuban identity -- Introduction : more than just scenery -- Revolution and revolutionary performance, or what happens when El Negrito, La Mulata, and El Gallego meet El Hombre Nuevo -- Artists in the special period, option zero, and the hombre novísimo, or the heroic rescue of Liborio and Elpidio Valdes -- Creative process and playmaking in Cumanayagua, or waiting for Atilio on the side of a country road -- The inundation of Siguanea and Cuba, or the near drowning and rescue of Cuba's Godot -- Cultural crusades and the unsung artists of Guantánamo, or how Don Quixote saves Humble Harriero from the devil -- Storytellers and the story-told : voices from the zones of silence, or who wins the wager if the cockfight ends in a draw -- Dramatic irony and Janus-faced nationalism, or the triumphant stage return of El Negrito and Mr. Smith.