Unlike past editions, next year’s Lagos Black Heritage Festival will begin on December 22 and run till October 2013 to ensure active participation of Brazil, the country in focus at the festival. Five years on, private sponsors are coming in trickles, reports Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME
Despite seeming lack of corporate sponsors of the yearly Lagos Black Heritage Festival (LBHF), Nobel Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has promised that the festival will never die. He said the absence of private sponsors would not kill the festival’s dream, adding that though the Lagos State government still funds the festival, the organisers have a special and very energetic sponsor team charged with the responsibility of marketing the festival.
This year’s festival, which is the first in the series on the theme: The Black in the Mediterranean Blue, focuses on the cultural exploration of Italy. It featured dancing, drama, masquerade parade, music, boat regatta, carnival, art exhibition, poetry and symposium. Next year’s theme is Bring back Brazil, which unlike this year’s, will begin on December 22 and run till October next year.
Soyinka, who spoke last weekend in Lagos, said most corporate bodies are not interested in sponsoring festivals but in items that will promote their goods and services. “Many people are nibbling at certain events in the festival, but the problem with corporate bodies is that they don’t fund festival; they look at the items which can promote their own stuff. And if somebody else has grabbed it, then the response you get is ‘it is okay, too late and too bad.’ Some items are more the favourites than others,” he said.
He said that The Vision of a child, a children painting competition segment of the festival, has been taken off the shoulders of the Lagos State government.
According to him, an arrangement has been reached with Diamond Bank, who did it this year and they want to continue. He noted that the mentorship programme has not been inaugurated because there is no sponsor for it yet.
He said that a Brazilian Samba troupe, Thobias de Vai Vai from Sao Paolo would perform on December 22 at the Freedom Park, Broad Street, Lagos by 7pm as part of the inauguration ceremony for the year of Brazil. From next year, he said, a competition in Yoruba rhetoric would be introduced in the festival
Soyinka, who is the festival consultant, explained why organisers’ of the festival chose to focus on Brazil in next year’s edition. Brazil’s culture in Nigeria is not only formidable but also remarkable. He said Nigerian culture in Brazil, especially the Yoruba culture is truly remarkable and the retentions are staggering and mind-bogling. He noted that on the streets of Brazil one finds akara je being fried and sold, adding that many institutions are named after Yoruba deities such as Osun, Sango, Orunmila among others.
“We feel it is a shame that many Nigerians look toward Europe far more than Latin America and the Caribbean,” he added.
“As I said very frankly, Portugal is merely a half way house to Brazil. Next year, we will feature the most vibrant of Brazil because the Brazilian culture is very formidable with components in Nigeria; and Nigerian culture in Brazil, especially the Yoruba is truly remarkable. The retentions are really staggering and mind-bugling. We are talking about areas in Brazil, which are effectively blacks. But Brazil of course is a genuine rainbow culture, rainbow people… You find names such as Babalola, Bamgbose in Brazil and the pride with which Brazilians hold and approach African culture is really unique.”
He said the decision to flag off the festival on December 22, was to allow Brazil to mobilise and participate fully in the festival. He noted that notwithstanding the extension, all the aspects of the festival would still hold while acceding to Brazil’s plea for more time. “We think we should accede to Brazil’s plea to make it a real huge family re-union. Most enthusiastic for me is the acceptance of the festival by Brazil. And on competitive level, is that Brazil wants to invade Lagos, but pleaded for postponement to allow full participation and mobilisation. However, the Lagos State government is not wishing to lose the festival dates on the tourism calendar,” he said.
He stressed that if the state must insist in wooing tourists to Lagos, then it must be ready to compromise in terms of date. “If you want tourists to invade the festival, I think we should really consider very seriously some kind of compromise. We could still have our cake and eat it,” he said.
