Edozie Udeze in this interview with Professor Sonnie Ododo of the Theatre Arts department of the University of Maiduguri, Borno State, engages him on the state of drama and theatre in the troubled state of Borno and lots more. Excerpts.
Professor Sonnie Ododo is not just a teacher of Theatre Arts; he is equally the President of Society for Nigerian Theatre Artistes (SONTA). SONTA is the umbrella body of all Theatre Arts teachers in Nigerian tertiary institutions. At the University of Maiduguri, Borno State, where he teaches Theatre, Ododo is known to be in the forefront of ensuring that practical drama is constantly kept alive.
But in the face of constant insecurity of lives and property occasioned by the Boko Haram menace in the whole of North-East Nigeria, how has he and his gang being coping to keep drama active and in the front burner? Ododo who loves to be on his toes to proffer answers on this, then he said, “Of course, in any place where you have insurgency, this tends to paralyse the system. This is so because you’ve to be alive first to engage in certain social activities. So the fact remains that people are more conscious of their safety, given the state of insecurity in Borno State. Social events that used to last well into the night had to be rescheduled. Most of them were now made to start early in the day and last till 6p.m.”
In this wise, theatre was equally affected. “Of course, you and I know that both theatre and other social activities were affected. Since theatre has to be in the evening, this also became a problem. So for some time now social and theatrical activities in the town of Maiduguri have not been vibrant. However, within the campus where we seem somehow immune from all of this, theatrical activities still go on. We still engage our minds in plays, dramas and sorts, to keep the environment warm and busy. We cannot say we would keep these things quiet because most of the students live off-campus. So, we do most of the programmes early enough for them to go home on time. So what I can tell you is that the show must go on wherever we find ourselves. We have been able to adapt to the situation to make sure that the theatre scene in kept busy and alive and that academic activities do not suffer.”
Ododo believes, however, that no artiste operates in an island and therefore the kind of theatre he displays in his environment is dictated by the whims of the moment. He said, ‘No artiste operates in an island. You must succumb to what that society provides for you. But you cannot in the name of theatre offend the sensibilities of the people or the host community. But I can tell you that both the people and the host community are amenable to good theatre. They love the sort of theatre and drama that appeal to them, that make their social lives good and memorable. So you cannot because it is theatre go naked on stage. Not even here in the South that you can display such madness. So, we have our own set of theatrical values to display in the North. Most of the time what you hear about the North is not what it is. No, it is not often so. There, theatre has its own values, its own norms and precepts. Theatre is a culture which the people follow conscientiously. We uphold those norms and we also have good audience for our productions. However, the people so much love comedy. They are in love with the theatre that can tease them, that can make them laugh, relax and feel at ease. The comic may even deviate a little, yet they may not mind.”
Ododo stressed, however, that it is usually wiser to balance the doctrines of theatre for such an audience in order to receive the best response and appreciation from them. “What you have in the South may not be what you have in the North. Yet, to them theatre is life. I can only say that in Maiduguri theatre is ever alive. Yes, there’s live theatre in the town. But it is not as robust as you have it in Lagos. Perhaps the centre of theatrical activities in Maiduguri is still the University. Just like you have in most major cities where you have theatre in the universities, that’s the same experience we have in the city of Maiduguri.”
A practical theatre artiste who loves to engage in the practice in spite of his busy schedule as a lecturer, Ododo delved into those memorable moments that have so far defined his theatrical outputs. He said, “Yes, my most exciting moment as a teacher of theatre in Unimaid is my exposure to the culture of the people. It is for me a new culture. I have been exposed to this new culture, to the new ways of looking at life. A new look at the people who have different lives to live, it shows me that the people are who they are due to their own culture, their own peculiarities. These are very very hospitable people, very very receptive to visitors. They are warm also to visitors,” he said.
He asserted that Maiduguri has always been a conducive place to everyone and this is why theatre seems to thrive there. “The most important thing to the people is how to obtain and retain your fellowship. It is topmost in their attitude to visitors and people around them. This goes to show also why their love for their local cultural values is immense and deep.”
Concerning the state of SONTA which he has led as its president for a while now, Ododo intoned, “We are viabrant now. And don’t forget that our national headquarters is in Maiduguri. So, the society for Nigerian Theatre Artistes is very much alive; we are working seriously to keep the activities fresh in the minds of members. We have programmes lined up every year to sensitise members and keep them on their toes. In November this year we’ll have our national conference. That’s what is in the offing. We will also be 35 years old this year and we are looking at what we can do to mark the anniversary. We will equally celebrate some of the core contributors to the growth and development of SONTA and theatre in Nigeria. This is one of the critical issues we have on ground right now. And of course we try to see how we can redefine the society with theatre development. We see how we can use theatre to advance the development of the Nigerian society. This is what is uppermost in our minds at the moment. And we’ll not relent until it is achieved so that we will let the world see the role of theatre in national development. We have also created activities to advance the careers of our members and encourage more people to come in.”
He, nonetheless, emphasized the relationship between the National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners (NANTAP) and SONTA and said, “Yes, we are working in synergy with NANTAP to have a robust theatre scene in Nigeria. Since the time of Greg Odutayo and now, the synergy has been there. The programme we are working on now is the revival of NUTAF, that is Nigerian Universities Theatre Arts Festival, in which we have the students converge on a campus for robust theatre festivities. So we are hoping that in April or May this year, we will have NUTAF so that our students will feel the pulse of total theatre once more. We hope to have it at the University of Benin, Edo State. We see how we can make it come back to what it used to be. We hope to have series of workshops too to help our students so that they will not be at a loss,” he concluded.
