The Nation Newspaper

Tag: stage

  • Putting Boko Haram on world stage

    One of the cardinal targets of the President Buhari administration is to ensure the security of lives and properties of all Nigerians and other nationals residing in the country.

    The 1999 Constitution of Nigeria as amended also backed President Buhari in that direction.

    That is why he is leaving no stone unturned in the efforts to defeat the terrorists, Boko Haram as soon as possible.

    Boko Haram, which have claimed the lives of many Nigerians, injured others and destroyed billions of naira worth of properties in the country in the past 5 years, have in recent times been carrying out their evil attacks in neighbouring countries.

    Besides relocating the headquarter of Nigeria’s Armed Forces battle against Boko Haram from Abuja to the heart of the war, Borno State, Buhari also gave the new service chiefs mandate to crush the sect before December, 2015.

    He did not hesitate to seek the support of neighboring countries under the Lake Chad Basin Commission and Benin Republic to defeat terrorism in the sub-region.

    The cooperation in the commission is mainly geared towards deployment of Multinational Joint Task Force against terror.

    Apart from the immediate Nigerian neighbours, Buhari also took the campaign against terror to the world stage.

    He visited Germany on the invitation of the G-7 leaders, where the world leaders opened a new chapter of diplomatic relationship with Nigeria as they promised technical and material support to quell Boko Haram and assist in rebuilding the Nigerian economy.

    Buhari also visited the United States of America (USA) in July 2015 and did not fail to seek the support of the US against Boko Haram.

    As a fallout of the visit, the United States pledged $5 million to the fight against Boko Haram, in addition to other material support.

    Buhari’s newest campaign against Boko Haram at the world stage is at the ongoing 70th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in the United States of America.

    Terrorism is among the top issues he tabled at the session.

    This campaign is directly to the right forum as the United Nations (UN) has the primary responsibility of maintaining international peace and security.

    Optimistic that the end of Boko Haram was really in sight, President Buhari in his Eid-el-Kabir message to Nigerians said: “Boko Haram’s reign of terror in parts of the country will be finally over very soon as the ongoing military onslaught against the terrorist sect will continue relentlessly until total victory is achieved.”

  • Slave Trade comes on stage

    Slave Trade comes on stage

    The phrase, it is good to catch them young has continued to reverberate in the world of theatre arts in Nigeria.  In the setting of the National Troupe of Nigeria, this aphorism has been their watchword whereby the management has never looked back in its efforts to ensure that drama permeates the lives of the younger ones.  This was why penultimate weekend the theatre scene in Nigeria was agog with series of performances by children and teens in the Creative Station programme put in place by the National Troupe of Nigeria.

    It is not only that this programme has been on in the past 6 years, the idea to use it to keep the young ones occupied during their long vacation and to also use it to teach them all aspects of the theatre is what has made the exercise quite commendable.  Since its inception, the programme has grown from strength to strength, incorporating into it more aspects of the stage theatre in order to enable the children to be more versatile and vast as artists.

    This year’s theme was not only anchored on the history of slavery and the import of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade which happened between Europe and Africa and the New World, the story was also used to remind everybody about the modern day slavery.  Presently, a lot of issues bordering on poverty and the increasing cases of migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea into parts of Europe has become a big headache not only to the European Union but to the Arab world and African leaders who have continued to orchestrate wars and strife to further impoverish their people.

    The scene opened with children singing in a choral form to welcome guests.  With the Exhibition Hall of the National Theatre, Lagos packed to the brim, it was interesting to see the children in their best forms marshalling out songs and being their own persons.  The outing, in fact, the arrangement was so glorious as the children glittered in their orange and black costumes.  This sort of costume further embellished the scene and helped the songs to permeate the audience.

    The ease with which the children took hold of the command performance before such a large audience, showed how much work the director of the programme, Josephine Igberaese, put in place to ensure that the  presentation came out fine.

    This was why she explained that “the programme has now metamorphosed into a family.”  This was also proved right because the children, both in and out of stage, no longer thought or behaved according to their social classes.  On stage, they were able to blend, dishing out songs and performances that dwelt on human experiences across nations and races.  “From what I hear, Igberaese continued, “the interactions among the children continued beyond the station which is one of the objectives, that of breaking barriers and social class.  This is why I call them children without borders for this singular reason.”

    It is for this reason that the month of August has been earmarked in the past 6 years to teach these children how to dance, how to do creative writing and do improvisation.  Also in the kitty for them is to be taught how to do voice-over, sing and mime.  On the whole, they were taught this year how to dwell on historical themes to do stage plays.  The theme of the play this year was Akrifa, coined from Africa, in order to re-direct their attention to the issues that pertain to the continent.

    According to Mike Anyanwu, the director, Legal Services of the National Troupe who wrote the play, he took his inspiration from an episode that happened in 1807.  This was soon after the Abolition of the Slavery Act in England.  “Indeed, the plot revolves around a slavery expedition by a band of British slave merchants.  These set of merchants attacked the people of Africa at the height of their annual thanksgiving festival.  However, their success and effort to ship their human cargo to Europe were stalled.”

    This was where the stage play was based on.  Interestingly, the children were able to interpret the scenes to the delight of both the playwright and the audience.  The thematic thrust of the play based on man’s inhumanity to man was basically to disabuse children’s mind towards wickedness and avarice.  The human race has to begin now to agitate for peace and togetherness and love across peoples of the world.  This is one of the primary reasons for bringing the children together, using theatre to indoctrinate them.  Theatre has a universal language based on total entertainment and education.  It is for people to use it to preach peace and to reach out to a wide spectrum of the society.

    The author put it this way:  “it is yet another literary and theatrical re-enactment of the 300 years of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade in which over 3 million slaves from Africa were transported to the America.  This was basically between the 15th and the 18th centuries… finally, the play encourages constructive gender inclusiveness in Africa.

    The director of National Troupe, Akin Adejuwon was so excited that in his opening remarks encouraged both the parents and their children to continue to show interest in the programme.  He said, “this will afford us more opportunity to develop more talents in this field.  Just sit back and enjoy these repertoire of presentation and see how the children have fared so far.”

    Among the guests present were Yemisi Shyllon, Uche Majekodunmi, Mike Ileka, Kehinde Kamson, Ibukun Odusote and many others.

  • Day I was embarrassed by a lady on stage –Bonsue fuji exponent Adewale Ayuba

    Day I was embarrassed by a lady on stage –Bonsue fuji exponent Adewale Ayuba

    Ace fuji artiste Adewale Ayuba had an early foray into music. At seven, he had made up his mind on a life-long career to be an entertainer, a struggle that later found him establishing a music band at 17. He became a force to be reckoned with when his hit album, ‘Bubble’, was released in 1991. Since then, he has not looked back. A few weeks ago, Ayuba clocked 50, and he was hosted by his fans in America. In this interview with Paul Ukpabio, the fuji artiste revisits the lifestyle that has sustained him in an industry that is full of uncertainty.

    You were not in the country for some weeks. Why did you travel?

    Yes, I was invited by some of my fans abroad to celebrate my 50th birthday. I was in some sates in America where my fans celebrated me. It was a time for me to thank God. There were different parties for me in New York and Chicago. Now I am back home to business in Nigeria. There was a party on May 22 in Houston, Texas. There was another one on May 24 in New York.v We also had another one on May 30 in Minneapolis. I am grateful for the reception I received over there.

    How long were you out of the country?

    I spent about three weeks abroad. Though I performed, the trip was specifically for my birthday celebration.

    What can you say about your fans based abroad?

    The people who had the parties for me abroad were mainly my Nigerian fans. I have a lot of fans who are not Nigerians.  I have Jamaicans and Americans as fans, but it’s Nigerians that invited me.

    So, 50 years has gone; what is your hope for the future?

    I intend to continue to promote fuji  to the world. That is actually my prayer. I want a situation where fuji music is discussed by Americans in America.

    I also pray that God allows me to achieve a situation whereby  people from foreign lands can come to Nigeria to look out for me and hear my music. It is better for that to happen than for me to be going there to play or do shows. 99% of Nigerians already know what is fuji. It is our music. People like the late Baba Agba Ayinde Barrister tried for fuji music, Kollington Ayinla too has tried. But it is better when foreigners come looking for us in Nigeria.

    Why do you have hope that America will swallow fuji music like that?

    America is ready for fuji music. The average American likes anything that is not American. Just as we over here appreciate hip hop music, they too love fuji music. Most individuals like what is foreign. Take for instance, makossa. It is not Nigerian, but Nigerians like the music and dance to it too.

    As a matter of fact, at a time, it was all over the Nigerian airwaves. Also, you know today that Americans are celebrating Fela Anikulapo-Kuti because they appreciate the type of music that he played while he was alive. Whatever you cannot do, of course, you will likely appreciate it.

    Do you have any regrets at 50?

    I am happy that I am a Nigerian. More importantly, I am happy that God gave me the music talent. But the only regret I have is that I started music at a tender age of seven, which means that I have done music all my life, but as I am talking to you now, I do not have an album out there which I can say is generating income for me. I have done many albums, successful ones too, but not one to show that this is the one that has been generating income for me. But every now and then, I see my music selling in town, but no money is coming to me. And this is happening to many musicians here. It is sad that our country allows musicians to be so robbed by pirates.

    How many albums have you made so far in your music career? And which ones did well?

    I have done 25 albums so far, and all my albums are good. I thank God for that. The first and second albums are good. ‘Bubble’ actually brought me into the limelight.  ‘Mr Johnson’ and ‘Ijo Fuji’ are there. ‘Fuji Music in America’ is there too.

    At seven, that was quite early to go into music. How did you do it?

    Music was God-sent to me. I realised that at that age and even earlier, anytime that my parents sent me on an errand, I went along the road singing. I was also usually attracted to the places where ceremonies were taking place in my neighbourhood in Ikene-Remo in Ogun State where I grew up. Once there, I would start singing without being contracted. I was singing for free.

    What kind of music were you singing? it must have been deep indigenous music…

    It was fuji music that I was singing. I chose fuji music because it was the music that I could start with little or no money. That is because all the instruments for fuji music are local. One didn’t need to have the knowledge of guitar, unlike juju music, for instance, where the knowledge of guitar and keyboard is needed. Fuji needs just your voice and locally made instruments.

    At what time did public acceptance come from you?

    Acceptance started in 1980. I was in Ikene, but my first album was in 1985. I was going around with no equipment, singing with three of my friends who held local items as instruments.

    One day, a man named Sunday Olojuanu saw me at a party. He was a welder. He went to my parents, told them that he was going to form a band with me. But my parents declined. They told him that they wanted me to go to school. He promised them that the band would only play shows on weekends. They eventually allowed him and we came up with a band name the Sunny Ayuba Band. We were together for three years.

    Were you making much money then?

    I was collecting whatever he gave me. But when I became 17, I then formed my band. I called my friends together. I started coming to Lagos to perform at Canary Hotel in Surulere, after which I returned to Ikene- Remo. I was coming for a weekly jump every Thursday evening. In 1985, I moved to Lagos Island where I got accommodation with a friend with my band boys. Then after my first album where I sang about Dele Giwa, people started knowing me.

    What was the motivating factor for you?

    For me it wasn’t about money. It was about making musical albums and being well known like the fuji mentors such as Alhaji Ayinla Barrister. At that time, any contract that was put before me, I would have accepted because it wasn’t about money. It was about being popular with what I was doing.

    How did you get a breakthrough in Lagos?

    From Canary Hotel where I was playing at the night club, I moved to Ariya Night Club which was owned by King Sunny Ade. I was playing there and my popularity was building. Not long, I got a breakthrough album, ‘Bubble’, in 1991.

    How did you manage your fame then?

    My parents were particular about me. They wanted me to go to school, and I was well cautioned from home about women.They told me that I could only marry one wife because in my family, we are not allowed to marry more than one wife. That made me to sit up and I saw the female fans as my sisters.

    At what point did you get married and what attracted you to her?

    I got married over twenty years ago. I was in Queens Borough Community College in New York when I met her. The moment I saw her, I told the person that was sitting next to me that she was my wife. I didn’t even know whether she was Jamaican, American or Nigerian. But she turned out to be a Nigerian, an Ibo lady.

    How did her parents react to her choice of a musician?

    It was initially tough because her parents already had their impression of who a musician was. They believed that musicians were womanisers who lived on alcohol and so on.

    How did you feel about the reaction from her parents?

    Well, I would perhaps have reacted in like manner. That is because 22 years ago, the lifestyle of musicians then was completely different from what we have now. You know, then Fela Anikulapo was reigning, and he was an image of a musician of that time.

    So how were you able to convince them?

    She was the one that eventually convinced me that I was the only one that she wanted to marry. At that time, I could not defend myself because there was nothing that I had to say.

    So many years after, what can you say about your marriage?

    I thank God. Marriage is like being in the university. We keep learning. Now, we have beautiful children and living happily. There is no way I could marry another woman because it is an abomination in my family. And I am the last child of my parents. So despite being a musician, I could not marry a second wife. Moreover, I do not even think that I need a second wife. After all, I wouldn’t want my wife to marry two men.

    What do you like most about her?

    I cannot say that there is a particular thing that I like about her. Till date, I have not been able to identify what I love about her. I just know that I am in love with her and that love keeps flowing.

    Is your wife into music too?

    She is not. Yes, she loves my music, but does not go to shows with me. The truth is that she is a housewife; she takes care of the home for us.

    Has your style changed?

    I love wearing white. It shows that one is clean. I like a tidy look and I wear other colours too, but at least 70% of my clothes are white.

    You keep looking younger than your age; what is the secret?

    It is rest of mind. For instance, we just talked about my wife. Marriage to the right person is very important. It helps a man to be organised, but when you are married to many women or to many girlfriends, your health and the health of your business will be affected, and that, of course, will lead to stress which would allow someone to grow old quick. I thank God that my home is settled.

    Apart from music, what other thing appeals to you?

    I love soccer ; I love football. Whenever I return from the office, I sit down in front of the television and watch football. I do not hang out like that because I am always at parties and shows. I am always like running home afterwards, so that I can get there and relax.

    What if a female fan walks up to you and tells you that she loves you, what do you do at that point?

    Well, when they say that, it invariably means that she loves my music. It is not really an expression directed at affections. It is the music that brought the fan and I together, so when she relates with me on that platform, it is the music that she loves not me as a person.

    At the same time, if she actually means to relate to me affectionately on a higher level, then it will be up to me to accept or not. It takes two to tangle. If she does not see me, then no affair will take place. If I do not take her to a hotel, for instance, I will not get to make love to her. So, I must make sure that I am not available for such affair.

    As a musician, has a fan ever embarrassed you?

    Yes, I met a lady one day while I was playing. She stood in front of me romantically and accused me that I was always frowning. She said I should relax and be cheerful and free with her. She was looking for something that she couldn’t get.

    We hear that you identify with COSON, do you think that the body is a solution to musicians?

    I am a Director with COSON. They are doing well. I must say. They are collecting money and sharing among artistes, but I still believe that they can do better. Collecting money is part of it, but the major one is to let the music pay. That is, let us be able to receive money for all the albums that we have done. Let us make piracy a thing of the past.

  • Saro The Musical: A spectacle on stage

    Saro The Musical: A spectacle on stage

    Like Fela on Broadway, Saro: The Musical made a successful debut in 2013. This weekend the musical concert will return to the Shell Hall, Muson Centre, Lagos with spectacle and colours. Ben Tomoloju reviews the six -day performances holding this Easter.

    It pesters. SARO pesters. From the conceptual stage right through the entire production process, it pesters like a bundle of joy wriggling its way into life, and with it a rapturous celebration of music, drama, culture and history.

    This is the feeling evoked on one’s mind by Saro The Musical, created and produced by Bolanle Austen-Peters and scripted by Seun Kentebe and Thomas Odia.

    It has been showcased twice between 2013 and 2014. It made its debut at the grand ballroom of Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island the year before. The second outing, titled: Saro The Musical 2, took place during the last yuletide with a clear evidence of the progressive imagination of a creative visioner.

    The object of this piece is essentially the sustainability of quality cultural expression of which Saro The Musical is a reference point, but not without a piquant exposition of content and style.

    ‘Saro’ explores the odyssey of Brazilian returnees after the abolition of slavery and slave-trade in the mid-19th Century. The returnees migrated from Sierra Leone to Lagos.

    Etymologically, ‘Saro’ is a Yoruba derivation from the ‘Sierra’, which also explains the historical fact that there is a thriving Yoruba community in Sierra Leone with some members bearing original Yoruba names up till this day.

    According to the lead character, a culture connoisseur and unofficial historian, Don Ceeto: ‘We are Saro descendants. In the beginning of the 1830s, our forefathers were freed slaves who migrated from Sierra Leone to Nigeria. Most of them were well-trained and experienced in medicine, law and the civil service whilst in Sierra Leone….When they arrived, they settled in Ebute-Metta, Yaba and Olowogbowo….The Saros were known for their travel in pursuit of freedom and commercial opportunity.’

    The expose went on with details of the elitism and cosmopolitanism that characterise this breed of Nigerians, summing up the thematic thrust of the creative exploration.

    What follows is a dramatic quest, a country-to-city migration of four musically-gifted village boys – Laitan, Azeez, Efe and Obaro – in search of the golden fleece in Lagos City.

    In the city, they are dazzled by the ritzy cityscape, the hustle and bustle and, of course, the menacing culture-shock that lands them right in the midst of pimps, pick-pockets, prostitutes, area-boys and all manners of social derelicts. In one swoop of a comically enacted raid, they end up in a police-cell. Right there in the cell, they raise their voices in an exciting, self-consolatory rendition of Bobby McFerrin’s ‘Don’t Worry, Be Happy.’ And this turns out to be providential.

    Don Ceeto, the dreamer, visioner and benevolent godfather is around to bail out one of his boys from the cell. The song filters to his hearing. Deeply impressed, he also bails out the village quartet, takes them into his creative custody and grooms them for his dream-musical project, SARO.

    Between the odyssey of the Saros and the village-to-city migration of the quartet, Don Ceeto identifies a historical parallel, underscored by the drive for self-actualisation through vintage cultural expression. The main vehicle, this time around, is music, while other forms of art – dramatic and spectacular – fall in place in the unfolding plot.

    Don Ceeto grooms the boys in his studio. He discovers that even his own secretary, Jane, is also a fantastic singer and co-opts her into the group. Don is crazy about talents. He has an eye for excellence. He brooks no nonsense, not even from his own pampered, overbearing daughter, Ronke. He exposes the boys to a broad spectrum of Lagos life – secular and spiritual – to bring them to fullest terms with his ideology. He hones their skill to be at par with the sophistication which his new vision of cosmopolitan African culture represents.

    Thereafter, the young singers are replete with confidence and, in contemporary parlance, one of them interjects the conversations with, ‘We don blow!’

    The show, from curtain-rise to curtain-call, was a titillating interplay of sight and sound, rich, whimsical dialogue and comic relief. No dull moment.

    It opened with a dance exposition, complemented by colourful costumes – red on black and an aerial pattern toned with a curvilinear play on fans – which was as symbolic as it brought to mind an aesthete’s religion of beauty.

    Through this the music flowed. It flowed  from the folk-songs of the Delta to Yoruba Bata merged with a pan-Nigerian dance and musical revue woven into the afro-fusion effect of Lagbaja’s ‘Africalypso’.

    Africa, in its idyllic setting, was projected on the big screen on the cyclorama showing a serene, romantic Kutuenji (the quartet’s village). The raw talent of the village singers was displayed against this background in a local festival. So was the scene involving the parting of two love-birds, Laitan and Rume, as they delivered the hair-raising song ‘Ma Gbagbe Mi’ (Don’t Forget Me), backed by the polyphonic orchestration of a compact chorus.

    One song sailed into another with unbridled fluidity from the boundless repertoire of Nigerian music; highlife, juju, apala, and a medley of contemporary pop.

    Scenes dissolved, one into another introducing new segments. Lagos welcomed the village boys with a bold projection of ‘Baba Meta’, the iconic statue of three white-cap chiefs that adorn the Lagos State Gateway at Alausa. At other points, it was either the high-rise buildings or a legion of yellow-buses that depicted on the big-screen the peculiarities of Lagos in sympathetic correlation with the action on stage. There were several other pictures projected and, in turns, they heightened the visual appeal of the presentation.

    Actions, in Saro, were so pacy, varied and variegated that members of the audience were sometimes propelled to the edges of their seats. Songs were enchanting, dances scintillating. The music was pulsating, just as the acrobatics were spectacular.

    From ordinary sketches to full-blown enactments, the dramatic elements made compelling statements about our cultural reality, its delicate mix and variety. Religion found a place in it, as Jane’s church choir, later joined by the quartet, treated the audience to soul-lifting performances of ‘Jesus Na You Be Oga’ and ‘Bridge Over Troubled Waters’.

    Then came the show-stopper before the show-stopper, a performance of John Legend’s ‘All For Me’, remixed by Kunle Ogunrombi. With dynamic showmanship and vocal dexterity, the singer opened with the original western pop and suddenly adapts it to a throbbing, syncopative and dance-effective Fuji idiom. The applause was deafening.

    But the ultimate show-stopper was the performance of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti’s ‘Water No Get Enemy’. The MC’s line whet the appetite. The introduction of the act tuned the musical palate to salivate on a special dish from a grand-master. And, at the mention of ‘Fela’, there was a mirthful explosion our hilarity, whistling, hooting, cat-calls and hauling of ‘Eleniyan!’, synchronised with the fire-effect on the massive screen. The horns led the way with their tuneful harmony, followed by throbbing beats from African drums and the dialogue of the strings. Then spritelike dance-maidens stepped in, wiggling their waists in electrifying waves. The rest was the climax of an evening entertainment that led you to a soothing dream.

    But behind these well-deserved was a lot of hard-work. There were well over a hundred members of cast and crew in the ensemble and the skills they displayed were buoyant. From the majors to the minors and extending to the technical personnel there was clear evidence of the essential synergy.

    The quartet, Azeez (Paul Alumona/Frank Konwah), Laitan (Patrick Duabua), Efe (Paulo Sisiano) and Obaro (Gideon Okeke) evinced such ebullience and versatility that places them in the ranks of total performers, follow-ups to Nigerian classic examples like Jimi Solanke, Tunji Oyelana and Tunji Sotimirin. The same applies to petit and vibrant Adejoke Laoye who brilliantly performed the role of Jane in dual capacity of actor and singer.

    All said, except for a snappy instance of distractive mannerism by Efe and Ronke, an unguarded drift of the follow-spot and intrusive puff of the smoke-effect, the entire package was phenomenal. Team-spirit was taut and indicative of the qualitative pliability of individual talent.

    A very important point to note in SARO is the input of a new generation of directors; Kenneth Uphopho (Drama), Yusuf Gbenga (Dance), Ayo Ajayi (Music), their very able Stage-manager, Ibukun Fasuhan and Costumier, Juliana Dede. These young thespians not only showed their resourcefulness and accomplishment on the big stage, they also leave one with the confidence that a brighter future awaits Nigerian theatre given the right kind of encouragement and support.

    At the peak of it all, the commanding presence of Dolapo Ogunwale (Producer) and Bimbo Manuel was nothing less than edifying. The duo brought on stage robust experiences in oral communication, through sound and compelling elocution as well as spontaneity in speech and action where the occasion demanded it. Manuel’s stage charisma was a delight. It matched effectively the scripted role of the man in control, Don Ceeto, the captain in an artistic voyage who effortlessly stitched one scene to another with the proficiency of a master.

    On that uplifting note, Saro The Musical 2 lived up to its billing. The audience could only shout ‘Encore’.

    That ‘encore’ should come. A classy piece like Saro should enjoy optimal presentation. Its viability is already vindicated in virtually every department of theatre production, so much that government, the business community and other interest groups can tap into it for all the relevant promotional objectives.

    *Tomoloju is the former Deputy Editor,The Guardian, Lagos.

     

  • Saro The Musical: A spectacle on stage

    Saro The Musical: A spectacle on stage

    It pesters. SARO pesters. From the conceptual stage right through the entire production process, it pesters like a bundle of joy wriggling its way into life, and with it a rapturous celebration of music, drama, culture and history.

    This is the feeling evoked on one’s mind by Saro The Musical, created and produced by Bolanle Austen-Peters and scripted by Seun Kentebe and Thomas Odia.

    It has been showcased twice between 2013 and 2014. It made its debut at the grand ballroom of Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island the year before. The second outing, titled: Saro The Musical 2, took place during the last yuletide with a clear evidence of the progressive imagination of a creative visioner.

    The object of this piece is essentially the sustainability of quality cultural expression of which Saro The Musical is a reference point, but not without a piquant exposition of content and style.

    ‘Saro’ explores the odyssey of Brazilian returnees after the abolition of slavery and slave-trade in the mid-19th Century. The returnees migrated from Sierra Leone to Lagos.

    Etymologically, ‘Saro’ is a Yoruba derivation from the ‘Sierra’, which also explains the historical fact that there is a thriving Yoruba community in Sierra Leone with some members bearing original Yoruba names up till this day.

    According to the lead character, a culture connoisseur and unofficial historian, Don Ceeto: ‘We are Saro descendants. In the beginning of the 1830s, our forefathers were freed slaves who migrated from Sierra Leone to Nigeria. Most of them were well-trained and experienced in medicine, law and the civil service whilst in Sierra Leone….When they arrived, they settled in Ebute-Metta, Yaba and Olowogbowo….The Saros were known for their travel in pursuit of freedom and commercial opportunity.’

    The expose went on with details of the elitism and cosmopolitanism that characterise this breed of Nigerians, summing up the thematic thrust of the creative exploration.

    What follows is a dramatic quest, a country-to-city migration of four musically-gifted village boys – Laitan, Azeez, Efe and Obaro – in search of the golden fleece in Lagos City.

    In the city, they are dazzled by the ritzy cityscape, the hustle and bustle and, of course, the menacing culture-shock that lands them right in the midst of pimps, pick-pockets, prostitutes, area-boys and all manners of social derelicts. In one swoop of a comically enacted raid, they end up in a police-cell. Right there in the cell, they raise their voices in an exciting, self-consolatory rendition of Bobby McFerrin’s ‘Don’t Worry, Be Happy.’ And this turns out to be providential.

    Don Ceeto, the dreamer, visioner and benevolent godfather is around to bail out one of his boys from the cell. The song filters to his hearing. Deeply impressed, he also bails out the village quartet, takes them into his creative custody and grooms them for his dream-musical project, SARO.

    Between the odyssey of the Saros and the village-to-city migration of the quartet, Don Ceeto identifies a historical parallel, underscored by the drive for self-actualisation through vintage cultural expression. The main vehicle, this time around, is music, while other forms of art – dramatic and spectacular – fall in place in the unfolding plot.

    Don Ceeto grooms the boys in his studio. He discovers that even his own secretary, Jane, is also a fantastic singer and co-opts her into the group. Don is crazy about talents. He has an eye for excellence. He brooks no nonsense, not even from his own pampered, overbearing daughter, Ronke. He exposes the boys to a broad spectrum of Lagos life – secular and spiritual – to bring them to fullest terms with his ideology. He hones their skill to be at par with the sophistication which his new vision of cosmopolitan African culture represents.

    Thereafter, the young singers are replete with confidence and, in contemporary parlance, one of them interjects the conversations with, ‘We don blow!’

    The show, from curtain-rise to curtain-call, was a titillating interplay of sight and sound, rich, whimsical dialogue and comic relief. No dull moment.

    It opened with a dance exposition, complemented by colourful costumes – red on black and an aerial pattern toned with a curvilinear play on fans – which was as symbolic as it brought to mind an aesthete’s religion of beauty.

    Through this the music flowed. It flowed  from the folk-songs of the Delta to Yoruba Bata merged with a pan-Nigerian dance and musical revue woven into the afro-fusion effect of Lagbaja’s ‘Africalypso’.

    Africa, in its idyllic setting, was projected on the big screen on the cyclorama showing a serene, romantic Kutuenji (the quartet’s village). The raw talent of the village singers was displayed against this background in a local festival. So was the scene involving the parting of two love-birds, Laitan and Rume, as they delivered the hair-raising song ‘Ma Gbagbe Mi’ (Don’t Forget Me), backed by the polyphonic orchestration of a compact chorus.

    One song sailed into another with unbridled fluidity from the boundless repertoire of Nigerian music; highlife, juju, apala, and a medley of contemporary pop.

    Scenes dissolved, one into another introducing new segments. Lagos welcomed the village boys with a bold projection of ‘Baba Meta’, the iconic statue of three white-cap chiefs that adorn the Lagos State Gateway at Alausa. At other points, it was either the high-rise buildings or a legion of yellow-buses that depicted on the big-screen the peculiarities of Lagos in sympathetic correlation with the action on stage. There were several other pictures projected and, in turns, they heightened the visual appeal of the presentation.

    Actions, in Saro, were so pacy, varied and variegated that members of the audience were sometimes propelled to the edges of their seats. Songs were enchanting, dances scintillating. The music was pulsating, just as the acrobatics were spectacular.

    From ordinary sketches to full-blown enactments, the dramatic elements made compelling statements about our cultural reality, its delicate mix and variety. Religion found a place in it, as Jane’s church choir, later joined by the quartet, treated the audience to soul-lifting performances of ‘Jesus Na You Be Oga’ and ‘Bridge Over Troubled Waters’.

    Then came the show-stopper before the show-stopper, a performance of John Legend’s ‘All For Me’, remixed by Kunle Ogunrombi. With dynamic showmanship and vocal dexterity, the singer opened with the original western pop and suddenly adapts it to a throbbing, syncopative and dance-effective Fuji idiom. The applause was deafening.

    But the ultimate show-stopper was the performance of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti’s ‘Water No Get Enemy’. The MC’s line whet the appetite. The introduction of the act tuned the musical palate to salivate on a special dish from a grand-master. And, at the mention of ‘Fela’, there was a mirthful explosion our hilarity, whistling, hooting, cat-calls and hauling of ‘Eleniyan!’, synchronised with the fire-effect on the massive screen. The horns led the way with their tuneful harmony, followed by throbbing beats from African drums and the dialogue of the strings. Then spritelike dance-maidens stepped in, wiggling their waists in electrifying waves. The rest was the climax of an evening entertainment that led you to a soothing dream.

    But behind these well-deserved was a lot of hard-work. There were well over a hundred members of cast and crew in the ensemble and the skills they displayed were buoyant. From the majors to the minors and extending to the technical personnel there was clear evidence of the essential synergy.

    The quartet, Azeez (Paul Alumona/Frank Konwah), Laitan (Patrick Duabua), Efe (Paulo Sisiano) and Obaro (Gideon Okeke) evinced such ebullience and versatility that places them in the ranks of total performers, follow-ups to Nigerian classic examples like Jimi Solanke, Tunji Oyelana and Tunji Sotimirin. The same applies to petit and vibrant Adejoke Laoye who brilliantly performed the role of Jane in dual capacity of actor and singer.

    All said, except for a snappy instance of distractive mannerism by Efe and Ronke, an unguarded drift of the follow-spot and intrusive puff of the smoke-effect, the entire package was phenomenal. Team-spirit was taut and indicative of the qualitative pliability of individual talent.

    A very important point to note in SARO is the input of a new generation of directors; Kenneth Uphopho (Drama), Yusuf Gbenga (Dance), Ayo Ajayi (Music), their very able Stage-manager, Ibukun Fasuhan and Costumier, Juliana Dede. These young thespians not only showed their resourcefulness and accomplishment on the big stage, they also leave one with the confidence that a brighter future awaits Nigerian theatre given the right kind of encouragement and support.

    At the peak of it all, the commanding presence of Dolapo Ogunwale (Producer) and Bimbo Manuel was nothing less than edifying. The duo brought on stage robust experiences in oral communication, through sound and compelling elocution as well as spontaneity in speech and action where the occasion demanded it. Manuel’s stage charisma was a delight. It matched effectively the scripted role of the man in control, Don Ceeto, the captain in an artistic voyage who effortlessly stitched one scene to another with the proficiency of a master.

    On that uplifting note, Saro The Musical 2 lived up to its billing. The audience could only shout ‘Encore’.

    That ‘encore’ should come. A classy piece like Saro should enjoy optimal presentation. Its viability is already vindicated in virtually every department of theatre production, so much that government, the business community and other interest groups can tap into it for all the relevant promotional objectives.

     

  • Saro 2 hits the stage Easter

    Saro 2 hits the stage Easter

    Following its successful outing during the Yuletide, the producers of Saro: The Musical2 are presenting to Lagosians, the electrifying Easter edition of the dance and music piece, Saro 2.

    The show is returning with a 100-man cast that traces and pays homage to Nigeria’s rich musical history by beautifully rendering some greatest hits over the years, along with its own ingeniously composed original music.

    And as before, the elegant combination of drama, music with the impeccably choreographed dance routines and unforgettably charged performances would be delivered by an attractive cast, according to its producer, Bolanle Austen-Peters.

    Saro is the story of four young people who, in an age-old search for greener pasture, migrate to Lagos with little else but an abundance of hopes and dreams, where they are duly reoriented by the people and experiences they encounter on their journey of self-realisation.

    According to Austen-Peters, the play is set to push Nigeria’s culture forward, adding that the choice of Lagos is inspired by the place the city represents in the promotion and celebration of arts and culture. The staging to Saro 2 Easter edition, she said, “is due to popular demand.”

    “Many, who missed the play during Christmas because they travelled, have asked that we stage it during Easter to give them the opportunity of watching it,” she said.

    While observing that the show was a huge success last year, she said, beginning from Wednesday, April 1, Saro 2 would be having 13 shows during Easter.

    She also disclosed that henceforth, there would be a new play that would be premiered every Yuletide, which would be re-staged during Easter.

  • Saro 2 hits the stage Easter

    Saro 2 hits the stage Easter

    Due to its successful outing during the Yuletide, the producers of Saro: The Musical2 are presenting to Lagosians, the electrifying Easter edition of the dance and music piece, Saro 2.

    The show is returning with a 100-man cast that traces and pays homage to Nigeria’s rich musical history by beautifully rendering some greatest hits over the years, along with its own ingeniously composed original music.

    And as before, the elegant combination of drama, music with the impeccably choreographed dance routines and unforgettably charged performances would be delivered by an attractive cast, according to its producer, Bolanle Austen-Peters.

    Saro is the story of four young people who, in an age-old search for greener pasture, migrate to Lagos with little else but an abundance of hopes and dreams, where they are duly reoriented by the people and experiences they encounter on their journey of self-realisation.

    According to Austen-Peters, the play is set to push Nigeria’s culture forward, adding that the choice of Lagos is inspired by the place the city represents in the promotion and celebration of arts and culture. The staging to Saro 2 Easter edition, she said, “is due to popular demand.”

    “Many, who missed the play during Christmas because they travelled, have asked that we stage it during Easter to give them the opportunity of watching it,” she said.

    While observing that the show was a huge success last year, she said, beginning from Wednesday, April 1, Saro 2 would be having 13 shows during Easter.

    She also disclosed that henceforth, there would be a new play that would be premiered every Yuletide, which would be re-staged during Easter.

  • Clean energy takes centre stage at Abuja summit

    In line with the “Sustainable Energy for All Initiative” of the United Nations and the mandate of doubling the share of renewable energy in Africa, the first Africa Clean Energy Summit (ACES) 2014, will bring together stakeholders in the power sector to find ways to shift focus from fossil fuels to renewable energy.

    The summit, which holds at the Sheraton Hotel in Abuja  from November 17 to 20, is coming on the heels of the current debate at the international level on the need to move from  fossil fuels to renewable energy. It is expected to give birth to the Africa Climate Solution Centre (ACSC), a hub that will serve as a clearing house for clean and renewable products, investors, financial institution and exhibitors for the African market.

    According to the Chief Operating Director (COD), Africa Clean Energy Summit, Mr. Olawale Akinwunmi, the event will include a world-class meeting, an international exhibition, technical conferences, business fora and other activities. “The hub will operate as a 24/7 permanent climate friendly energy solution initiative for exhibition and sales of renewable energy products and services. The initiative highlights both new and planned developments, helping to source technology, secure financing and enter  into business partnerships with development partners,” he said.

    Other activities slated for the summit include the incorporation of the Goodluck Jonathan Institute of Clean Technology (GJICT). Dr. Kandeh Yumkella, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Chief Executive Officer, Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL), and UN Energy Chair, will deliver the keynote address at the event.

    Akinwumi, who is the Chairman, the Environment Communications Limited, said the summit would also bring to the fore an earlier submission of  relevance of the declaration of Mohammed Ashry, the Chairman, Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century, who reckoned that with the world’s energy dynamics becoming increasingly complex, there is a need for greater global integration and collaboration to address how the world will power its future generations.

    “Indeed, the future of renewable energy looks very different presently than it did a decade ago. This is well accentuated by the recent unanimous declaration by the UN General Assembly, which designated 2014-2024 as the United Nations Decade of Sustainable Energy for All.

    “This declaration underscores the importance of energy to sustainable development and the need for increased use of renewable sources of energy, energy efficiency, and the sustainable use of traditional energy resources. Nigeria will replicate what America is doing; just as President Obama is solarising America, President Jonathan is solarising Nigeria,” Akinwunmi said.

  • Tunde Kelani deploys stage, film technique in Yeepa

    Tunde Kelani deploys stage, film technique in Yeepa

    Ace filmmaker, Tunde Kelani, is charting a new path in film production in Nigeria with his ‘filmed play’, Yeepa, an adaptation of Prof. Femi Osofisan’s classic play, Yeepa Solarin Nbo.

    The award-winning cinematographer, who has just wrapped up his new feature film, Dazzling Mirage, due to be premiered on November 7, has revisited Yeepa Solarin Nbo as a ‘filmed play’, featuring a hybrid of traditional theatre artistes, trained actors and a handful of Nollywood stars.

    The ‘filmed drama’ depicts Isola (Bayo Bankole), a rascally and unreliable man who is mistaken for the formidable Public Complaints Commissioner, Solarin, by the corrupt officials of the Local Government Council. His presence causes anxiety and panic among the officials, and they make desperate efforts to out-do one another, so as to pacify the visitor. The flurry of activities to cover their misdeeds exposes the high level of corruption and rot prevalent in the local council. Isola is, therefore, generously bribed and accorded the reception that befits the status of a man of importance. The discovery of the mistaken identity coincides with the arrival of the real Public Complaints Commissioner.

    The new direction, Kelani said, would elicit interests and excitement in the Nigerian film industry. “The industry needs more exciting stories; that is, productions that are not only stimulating but good enough to elicit huge response from the audience and commercial success at the box office. We really need to swing away from that era of stale or repetitive stories and explore the richness of our literary resources. That is why I always emphasise and remind young people that you can’t, for instance, be a good filmmaker, if you don’t read. This is because having acquired the skill to make films, your bank of imagination and fantasy has to come from somewhere. You cannot create something from nothing. “

    In Yeepa, Kelani preserves the stage form and infuses film technique, deploying four cameras to shoot in Dream Studio, Ikeja, Lagos and on locations in Abeokuta. With award-winning film director, Niji Akanni, as the Artistic Director, Kelani recalled the intervention of Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, when he was tinkering with the idea of filming Amos Tutuola’s Palmwine Drinkard. “Prof. Wole Soyinka reminded me that it would take a long time to achieve; so, he suggested I film it on stage. I think Yeepa is the guinea pig, an experiment preceding greater things because I’ve already started to think of other great plays that influenced me and clearly impressed me. I’m already moving beyond Yeepa and thinking of something else.

    Kelani, who said Yeepa offers a peep into the current socio-political problems plaguing the country, further said: “As far as I’m concerned, the theme is like an extension of what I’ve always done; that is, looking for socially relevant contents. Yeepa certainly fits that description, as we prepare for the 2015 elections. Already, you can see the drama playing out and it’s just like a comedy. When you look at all the tension in the country now, Yeepa is just a comic relief. Let’s laugh at ourselves because we’re all corrupt.”

    Yeepa, according to him, will be screened at select cinemas, community halls and schools, in addition to some private and corporate screenings from October.

    It stars Ropo Ewenla, Bayo Bankole, Ayo Binta Mogaji, Ebun Oloyede (Olaiya), Toyin Osinaike, Joke Muyiwa, Kayode Olaiya, Monsuru Olajide, Samson Alli, Ibikunle Oladipo, Gboyega Olomodosi, Toyin James, Toyin Omotubora and Yemi Ogunyemi.

  • Idachaba: A sage has left the stage

    SIR: Professor Francis Suleiman Idachaba recently passed on at the age of 71. Should we be mourning or celebrating Professor Idachaba’s transition? Going by our cultural and religious proclivities, we are expected to mourn and not celebrate the dead. I think we should both mourn as well as celebrate his transition.

    Here was a man who hardly settled for anything less than the best. His knack for excellence, both in private and public engagements, is a fact that cannot be debated. Little wonder he achieved unparalleled and matchless results in virtually all the projects he undertook during his earthly sojourn. Professor Idachaba exemplified hard work, honesty, transparency, accountability and discipline. He brought these priceless virtues to bear in every of his assignments, even in unofficial dealings.

    This was a man who, against seen and unseen odds, midwifed the setting up, running and sustenance of the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Benue State. As pioneer Vice Chancellor, Idachaba didn’t only focus on physical development, he rolled out a number of beautiful academic programmes to meet the intellectual demands of students and lecturers as well. He fought hard to make the school a centre of academic excellence. Discipline and transparency formed part of his cardinal objectives. The system he operated gave no room for laziness, truancy, corruption, examination malpractice and cultism. He did his very best to fight and banish these vices, especially cultism. It is indeed to his eternal credit that the university still remains one of Nigeria’s best tertiary institutions years after its establishment.

    His track-records while at the famous Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), DFRRI, NALDA, WHO, WORLD BANK, amongst others are eloquent testimonies of the very stuff deposited in him. He was exceptionally good at breathing life into seemingly dead projects. This probably accounted for why authorities at different levels always ran to him when in troubled waters. He had the proverbial magic wand.

    As a beneficiary of his good and enduring modest efforts during his brief but achievement-laden years as vice chancellor of Kogi State University, (KSU), Anyigba, it is important that I celebrate and mourn this transformative leader. Like a messiah, he came and rescued what was left of KSU after it fell under the sledge-hammer of the National Universities Commission (NUC) in 2005 following the school’s dismal performance when it submitted her programmes for accreditation. The opprobrium that followed NUC’s action was so serious that parents threatened to withdraw their wards from the institution. It was a dicey situation. The situation appeared complicated, hydra-headed and foggy. The then state governor’s resolve to trace the late professor to his ‘hiding’ place remained Governor Idris Ibrahim’s topmost achievement in office.

    When the Idachaba train finally landed in KSU, things changed for the better. A situation formerly termed irredeemably pathetic and hopelessly configured improved considerably. The rapid transformation that KSU witnessed just within the first year of his assumption of office is a testament to his avowed commitment to excellence and competence in managing both human and material resources. He was a good leader by all standards. He paid regular and unscheduled visits to students’ halls of residence just to see things for himself. That was the extent to which he demystified his office and personality.

    As a resourceful, revered and renowned teacher, his hands were all over the place. He was a pioneer in many respects, an advocate, facilitator and mentor; a professors professor.  In death, Africa has lost a fine scholar, cerebral strategist, articulate thinker, astute administrator, unrivalled researcher and outstanding intellectual asset.

     

    • Abdullahi Yunusa,

    Imane, Kogi State