Xajoj is a genre of theatrical performance involving music, dance, and storytelling. It is most famously associated with the Rabinal Achí, a pre-Columbian Maya play also known as Xajoj Tun, the tun being a type of wooden drum used in its performance.

The Rabinal Achí is a 15th-century dynastic Maya drama, and a rare example of preserved pre-Hispanic Maya theatrical traditions. It comprises myths of origin and addresses popular and political subjects concerning the inhabitants of the region of Rabinal, expressed through masked dance, theater, and music.

The oral and written narrative is presented by a group of characters, who appear on a stage representing Maya villages, such as Kajyub’, the regional capital of the Rabinaleb’ in the 14th century. The narrative, divided into four acts, centers on a conflict between two major political entities in the region. Its main characters are two princes, the Rabinal Achí and the K’iche’ Achí.

Since colonization in the 16th century, the Rabinal Achí drama has been performed annually on Saint Paul’s day, January 25th. The festival is coordinated by members of cofradías, local brotherhoods responsible for running the community.

By taking part in the dance, the living enter into contact with the dead, the rajawales, represented by masks. Recalling the ancestors is not simply a means of perpetuating the heritage of the past, but also a vision of the future, for one day the living will join their ancestors.