The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Troupe

  • An ‘entertainment troupe’ for Bauchi govt

    Government is an interesting animal, to put it blandly. And governments in Africa and the Black world can safely be described as hybrid monstrosities. You may yet dub them genetic accidents of mired ancestry. Government in this corner of the planet regardless of its size – so long as it is imbued with power – is inherently toxic.

    Power around here is a zero sum game. It almost doesn’t matter who is on the driver’s seat, the effect is the same, it always impacts with the deleterious effect of the hard local gin. Like the type so high in liquor content it is combustible.

    And there are hardly any exceptions on the horizon. Indeed, the difference between a stable leader and a loose cannon is simply power. Power corrupts our people and we do not need absolute power to corrupt us confoundedly. Such has been our jungle lives and the entire snail-shaped continent is replete with examples – north to south, east to west. Just mention any corner and Hardball will show you a dozen maladjusted men big. Sadly, this dark phenomenon has been with us since the beginning of time.

    As you may have been wondering, this running lament has been triggered in Hardball by a small piece of news tucked into the pages of a national newspaper last Sunday. It says: “Bauchi government revokes AIT/Raypower C of O. Of course C of O means Certificate of Occupancy; the authentic official land title signed by governors and issued by state governments in Nigeria.

    Now if that isn’t absolute power by any means or measure. Such powers conferred on one man to render another man homeless and in fact destitute by a single stroke of the pen is indeed awesome. Now the Bauchi State government in the Northeast corner of Nigeria decided to wield its powers thus rendering the broadcast house homeless.

    By revoking the C of O of the Daar Communications Group in Bauchi State, the government and by extension, the governor, has declared the company a persona non grata in the state – without the courtesy of proffering a reason.

    Now the company’s management thinks it may not be unconnected to the fact that it allows the opposition in the state to air their views alongside government.

    Well, let us close it with the official response of Bauchi State government: “The government as empowered by the law, reserves the right to revoke, withdraw or suspend the Certificate of Occupancy given to anyone.

    “The issue should have been whether or not the government has the right to do so and it is not true that government withdrew the Certificate of Occupancy because AIT does not ENTERTAIN, (emphasis is Hardball’s) the state government.”

    No Freudian slip there because governments in Africa would prefer that media houses were ENTERTAINMENT TROUPES. Now that Daar has been banished, let the state government give the C of O to a circus group.

  • National Troupe: For the love of Nigeria

    With series of satires and performances based on the need to move Nigeria ahead for more effective and concerted change, the National Troupe of  Nigeria has moved to Abuja, the nation’s capital to preach the message of cultural and moral rebirth. The event tagged ‘I Love Nigeria’, took place on Valentine Day at the Unity Park, Abuja. Edozie Udeze reports

    In its guest to continuously search for a better Nigerian society, the National Troupe of Nigeria (NTN) has devised a new pattern of dance drama to capture the heart of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja. Last weekend, in collaboration with the National Orientation Agency (NOA) in what was termed “I Love Nigeria” the Troupe presented series of dances anchored on the unity and progress of Nigeria.

    Held at the Unity Park, Abuja, the dances were done on Valentine day, to show love, true love, rooted in the heart of people can help to move Nigeria to the next level where ethnicity, religious bigotry, hatred, narrow-mindedness and political thuggery would soon be flushed out in the national psyche of the Nigeria society.

    This was why the dances and dramas were performed essentially to touch on those terrible habits Nigerians display that have not encourage the society to prosper. All aspects of professional misconducts in the society were harped on, in which every body was asked to sit up to ensure that Nigeria is made a better place for all and sundry.

    Thus doctors were cajoled to be upright in their treatment of patients. It was good remind them that the head condition of the vast majority of people lay in their hands. Therefore it behooves on them to use their sound professional ethics to give the people the best medical facilities ever. In it, Sobifa Dokubo who acted Nigeria was decked in the National colours of green-white-green, designed to represent the Niger Delta symbolic designs. Dokubo, a veteran of stage, used the opportunity to scold all professionals represented in the play to do the best for the total cohesion, progress and development of Nigeria.

    Each profession has a duty, to perform to put the Nigerian society on the right track to stardom. Both doctors importers, farmers, teachers, civil servants, engineers, the youths, artisans, artists, owe it to the people to discharge their duties diligently for Nigeria to measure up with the rest of the world.

    What will it profit a farmer when he uses fake  and inferior fertilizers to produce crops, that will be harmful to millions of Nigerians? Most of the organically produced food crops pushed into the market pose serious health hazards to the people if all professionals adhered  to safety of their professions; if they truly love the Nigeria society and its teeming people, then they will have the heart to commit less atrocities in order to save the people. No society ever gets it better when its engineers keep building substandard houses that collapse at the slightest whim. No government will be happy to see its engineers do roads that do not last longer before they begin to develop potholes. This was why the drama infused with heavy dances were quite appropriate to pass the message across to teeming crowd that gathered to watch the shows.

    In their midst were soldiers, both serving and retired who saw in the plays renewed zeal to fight more to liberate to people for clutches of Boko Haram. Also present were top civil servants who were told to be more punctual to work and produce more to help the economy grow.

    Civil servants who report to duty say by 10am and register 6.30 am where admonished to desist from the habit forthwith. In his fatherly artistic way, Dokubo intoned “ Oh, it is not good when you falsify your age to remain for ever in the service. It is not good when you habitually produce ghost workers in order to cheat the system; when you make people’s files to disappear at random. And then threaten to go on strike for salary increase for works you did not do diligently. For most part, the arena was silent; people were somewhat reflective and sober. The messages hit them hard on the head. The usual clapping and acclaim that accompany such satires and hilarious place did not happen. Nigerians were told the truth in a way that was new on them.

    “Oh yes,” Akin Adejuwon, the Artistic Director of the Troupe said “it is to make the messages clearer to the people. Change has to be made concrete; people have to know what it is to make a meaningful change. It has to start from each and everyone of us. So, while the NOA uses speeches to do it, we use actions, performances, shows, plays, dances, songs, etc, to permeate the people. The beauty of artistic demonstrations or performance art is that its effect is instantaneous. You feel it as it is being released and you take the message home and chew on it. Most times, they message is addressing you in particular, noting those bad habits you have which you must shed to make progress. This is why we have adopted this method and I hope it is catching on fast.”

    In a way the project is a continuation of the vow and promise Adejuwon made at the initial beginning to take the Troupe to all the crannies of the society. “Yes, we are taking the Troupe out of the National Theatre, Lagos to other places to let Nigerians feel the impact of the Troupe. The dances, the dramas, the songs, et al must reflect on the areas of the Nigerian problems in order for us to move on ahead.”

    In his own speech, Mike Omeri of NOA reiterated the need for Nigerians to fall in love with what is their own. “On a day like this and even beyond, Nigerians need to show real love to one another. This show today is to remind us that love is in the air and it has to be a continuous habit. We need to overcome prejudices and ethnic problems in order to grow as a nation. What is right for the society is what we should do. Let us always remember to show love whether we here or somewhere else. For, to us, love is universal”

    “In other words, let love be our armour. Today Nigerian soldiers have to be celebrated for having degraded Boko Haram. No territories are in the hands of Boko Haram today because our soldiers have been diligent. It is time therefore to dedicate today to them and ask them to do more for the good of nation,” Omeri said.

    In her comment about the play, Josephine Igberease who conceived the show said, “On a search to reward true patriotic citizens in the season of love, Nigeria (a father figure) assembles all contestants from all works of life – From the teachers, to the doctors, engineers, farmers, artisans, youth groups, business tycoons, to mention but a few. Everybody gathers together in groups with the song of ‘I LOVE NGEIRA’ in their mouths, singing praises of themselves with pride. After all the merriment and boastfulness of individual group achievements, the story take a new turn when Mr. Nigeria announces no one is the winner. He goes further to show them the areas where they all fall short, and motivates them to change their ways if truly they love him, Nigeria. It is a story of CHANGE.

  • National Troupe entertains Internally Displaced Persons

    National Troupe entertains Internally Displaced Persons

    It was dance-drama galore last week when the National Troupe of Nigeria paid an official visit to Bauchi State to perform for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).  The plays and songs were done to suit the people and to remind them that the government and people of Nigeria have not forgotten them.  Edozie Udeze reports

    What does theatre do to the soul, especially when combined with dance and rendered meticulously during the harmattan season?  In Bauchi State last week, the harmattan breeze and cold was at its height and it was time for members of the National Troupe of Nigeria to visit the State to perform for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).  The outing was a show of all shows during which the atmosphere was deliberately created to amuse, tease, entertain and keep the IDPs happy and joyous.

    The journey to Bauchi State to duly identify with the IDPs began in September last year when Mr. Akin Adejuwon assumed the position of the Artistic Director of the National Troupe of Nigeria.  In one of his stakeholders meetings, he had made it clear that he’d like to take the Troupe to the war-torn zones to perform and entertain not only members of Nigerian Armed Forces but those affected by the Boko Haram insurgence.

    This promise was made at the height of the crisis when it was foolhardy for anyone to contemplate such a suicidal mission.  But Adejuwon has never been flimsy or flippant or ever been known to be one who shrieks his promise.  He is totally committed to repositioning the Troupe to be outstanding both in outlook and in the areas of coverage for total and national cohesion.  The Troupe is meant to cater for all Nigerians.  To him, the Troupe is also for all and sundry.  There is no class distinction or recrimination of any type.

    Even when funds were hard to come by and it seemed the vision might not see the light of day, he nonetheless trudged on.  Today, the first stage of the series of the dance-drama performances to make the IDPs feel a sense of belonging has taken place in Bauchi town where over 400 IDPs witnessed the ecstatic performances by the Troupe. The venue of the show was Government Junior Secondary School, Fadamar Madda, inside the state capital.

    Even though the show was done in collaboration with the National Orientation Agency (NOA) and the Bauchi State government, the idea of the songs, dances and the dramas was to showcase what was close to the people concerned.  This was why the title of the dance was murna, an Hausa name espousing a sense of love and oneness.  The dancers therefore weaved stories like moonlight and totally communal in nature to engage the people.  It was time for everyone in the arena to see the futility of the crisis through the dances.

    As soon as the dancers stepped into the stage with their first demonstrations, an old woman, in her late 70s whom the IDPs simply identified as Alhaja took to the stage.  She obviously thought it was a free for all show since the songs appealed to her and indeed what she had been used to back home.  As she screamed and made cricket-like noises in the typical rural Hausa woman form, the people clapped, heralded and screamed along with her.  When it was time to change the dance or sit down or swing to and fro, the old woman fell in line.  She was so natural with it that her part of the show became the cynosure of all eyes.

    The IDPs sat in clusters, totally glued to the stage.  It was one moment that dazed them beyond words as the dances reminded them of their various homes in Adamawa, Yobe and Borno States where they are coming from.  The dances came in ten different forms, lasting over one hour and reminding the people that there is yet hope in their current situation.  Murna is a beautiful form of relaxation in various communities in the North-East of Nigeria where peace has been elusive.

    The drama aspect of it proved to them that no condition is permanent in this world.  It showed them that life itself is like a stage and theatre comes to make life’s many foibles lighter.  This was why Mike Anyanwu of the National Troupe who wrote the story anchored it around the traditions of the rural Hausa people.  Here the drama explores “different people from different communities who found themselves together because they were forced out of their homes with no hope for the future.  Now the Chief of Defence Staff pays them a surprise visit.  This made them realize that they have not been forgotten by the government of the day,”  Anyanwu wrote.

    However, the change mantra comes in with plenty of the shouting of Sai Baba.  The dance patterns changed from stage to stage to sychronise with the rhythmic tempo of the drumming.  The stages of the dances spelt out that it was not business as usual.  Through both the speeches and the dances and the songs, Government not only gave them hope, but decided to encourage them to form co-operative societies.  This was to enable them learn how to make baskets, pots, mats, textiles, weaving and fashion designing.

    Through the use of local mats and baskets, the drama aspect of the show permeated the people.  It could be seen from the way they clapped and nodded their heads that the message was sinking in and melting their hearts.  It was that psychological effects of the messages in the dance-drama that the National Troupe intended to achieve in order to make the people feel loved.  Before the shows ended, the atmosphere of sadness that initially enveloped the arena had disappeared.  With deep sense of appreciation on their faces, both the young, and the old became gregarious once more.

    Adejuwon who sat with rapt attention all through the show with Mike Omeri of NOA,  saw in it an opportunity to associate and remonstrate with fellow compatriots.  He said, “it is easier to reach out to the people through theatre.  It makes the message easier and faster.  This is why I’ve told Omeri that instead of the long grammar he uses at NOA to do his job both of us can now cooperate and collaborate.  In this way, I can provide theatre while he brings the talk.  You could see the response of the people.  You could see that they did not need long speeches to follow in the sequences of the event.  It was their show.  It was created for them to feel their own type of theatre as a form of amusement and the message was clear.  In it we told them not to despair, not to lose hope and that we can always remember you.”

    To show this love in concrete term, some food items were donated to the IDPs.  Omeri said it was to comprehensively identify with our brothers and sisters who have been uprooted from their cradles.  “These few items will go a long way in cushioning the effect of your situations,” he said.  “It shows that Government still loves and cherishes you.”

    This was in conformity with the goals and ideals of NOA, created to champion moral and cultural rebirth in the psychic of Nigerians.  This was why the collaboration between these two parastatals of the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture becomes more imperative at this material time.  In fact, NOA’s involvement with the grassroots has made it almost a household name when it comes to discussing and talking moral rejuvenation for the country.

    So it is hoped that beyond the programmes for the IDPs, culture, dance, drama, morality and reorientation will always converge to save Nigeria.  The National Troupe artistes showed that their love for dance is often irrevocably linked to the people.  And for the sake of love and unity, the Troupe has been in the forefront of using dances, dramas and songs to appease people of all classes.  Each audience and class of people gets the type of dance or drama it deserves.

    As the Troupe spread the message of love, so also were the IDPs charged to follow suit.  It is no longer a moment to foment crisis or look for scapegoats for our numerous misdemeanours, rather it is time to move on ahead with this change mantra that encompasses brotherhood, forgiveness, love, togetherness and peace.  And murna is that solidarity effort for a new and fresh beginning both for the IDPs and all champions of a united Nigeria.  And it was good also that Josephine Igberaese who directed the show found it expedient to dissect the message to fit into the mood of the society.  With the appropriate costumes in various colours,  shades and styles, murna has come to remain a fresh discovery and experimentation by the National Troupe of Nigeria.

  • Troupe to perform in conflict zones

    Troupe to perform in conflict zones

    With his appointment as the Director of National Troupe of Nigeria, Akin Adejuwon has decided to infuse new life into the Troupe. Having been assured by the Nigerian Army that the Troupe will be performing for peace keeping purposes across Africa and more, he told Edozie Udeze in this interview that he and the Troupe are ready for the tasks ahead

    You assumed office as the new director of the National Troupe of Nigeria with the creation of Ajoyo, a dance pattern with which you’ve been touring the country. What is Ajoyo and why the tour?

    Ajoyo means celebration and it came up because immediately I received my letter of appointment, I realised I would be holding the position in trust for a lot of people. Until I got my letter, I wasn’t really told which portfolio to hold, even though I was interviewed by the Minister of Culture, Chief Edem Duke. I sent text messages and I did all kinds of things for him to tell me what office I’d hold. But he didn’t.

    It was on the last day that I realised it was the National Troupe of Nigeria. I was actually expecting something in the line of visual art which is my own area of training. When I got the letter I was thrown aback a bit. But after a while, it just occurred to me that I have experienced and I have organised series of programmes in the performing arts virtually all my adult life. Like I mentioned earlier on, I spent most of my life during my holidays while at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, with Uncle Demas Nwoko. That was in his studios in Ibadan.

    Also, I spent some of my spare time with Oba Sonuga who was then an artistic director. I was also close to Adeniran who was once the director of OAU’s Institute of Cultural Studies in Ife. And so performing arts has not been new to me. I have been involved, I have been with it most of my adult life as both an organiser of events and a promoter of cultures across states and climes. There had been command performances I had participated in over the years. I have done children theatre workshops at several times in different places through cartoons and so on. So, I have been into performing art.

    When I came to that realisation, I quickly began to write down my plan of activities; what I will do to put the Troupe on the right track to perform and be fully useful and engaged. This was what I did send to the minister, even though I also added some research which I conducted. By the time I was defending my plan of action, he was really impressed. He asked: where did you get all these from? Three of the points I raised were already in his action plan for the Troupe. So, when I got that kind of approval from him, I hit the road running. When I was at the Institute of Cultural Studies I had little to run and maintain the place. So, I am used to no money situation. In other words, I am used to a Spartan kind of situation. I was not afraid to go into it all even though I inherited a debt of N26million when I got to the National Troupe of Nigeria.

     

    Even then overhead had not been released for three months. And the office that was given to me was a bit uncomfortable compared to what I had in Ife. But this is a federal parastatal and it was like I had that blank cheque for me to do the job I was appointed to do. That was why I had to quickly put in place the stakeholders parley so as to have the input of those people with whom I have had those contacts professionally. From there, ideas came up which are really in synchronization with what I have for the Troupe. It was in the process of that I said, ah, we cannot do this without having a production, an artistic performance to usher in the people.

    This was how Ajoyo was finally created with ideas and dances from here and there. Quickly, the experienced directors I inherited swung into action and in the end we have Ajoyo. It was a mosaic of repertoire which comprised of all aspects of the art. And so within a few days the ideas were fused into stage with different dance patterns to have Ajoyo. That Ajoyo was completely put together by the core artistes themselves. That was how it came up.

     

    So how do you evaluate the nation-wide tour so far?

    I had evaluated it before we took it out to the states. I saw it as the best dances for the road-show. I had put it out before for peer review and the response was good. But we know we’ll get better as the road-show goes on. The plan is that as more shows that we have the more we see the need to do more to get the attention of the people.

    We took references from the reactions we got from people. We worked on those ideas that today we’ve got better and bigger. The idea of Ajoyo is to truly get the people involved in the dance patterns, indeed the ideas which are meant to appeal to the public. Let the people see the Troupe as it really is. It is their own Troupe and they have to really identify with it. Also, I feel it is a work in progress. I will tell you that from my experience of organising festivals, you can see that this is a festival of sort; it is a noble festival. I didn’t want to let the Troupe know exactly what I wanted them to do. This has not been done and they are not used to it.

    This is the European-type of theatre when you take the dances and performances to the people for them to feel it. You should know that Africans are known to take theatre to the streets; to the palaces of kings and market squares. And most of them are paraded in town before they are performed. This is what we’ve been able to do in the states where we performed and the reactions were very impressive. So, our work is to discover new talents; is to see how we can lure the young ones into art as a profession and as a career. We have opened a website and the responses have been encouraging. The awareness createdby the road-show is beginning to permeate the society. We wouldn’t find all these in a static theatre and so we had to move. Even the artistes, by the time we started, they said oga, let us try and see if it will work.

     

    What next for the National Troupe?

    Today, just after one week of performances, I am talking to you from the University of Ilorin, where a few minutes ago the vice-chancellor, Professor Abdulganiyu Ambali, volunteered to partner with us to package a festival for Nigerian universities. It is to take off from the University of Ilorin and from there to other universities. I told you before that I wanted a festival of domestic arts and this conforms with that idea. We’ve just done week and you can see what we’ve attracted to the Troupe. I have work in progress. Yes, this is why we need to perform in the 36 states of the federation. I even intend to go and perform at the Sambisa forest next year.

    But before we go into that, we need to have proper meetings with the armed forces of the federation. We all have to agree on the modalities and all that. The soldiers welcome the idea, in fact they are more enthusiastic than most people are. No matter how good I am as a dance director, I can’t just jump into performance in such a place. The soldiers have to be involved in terms of security and other assurances. So, I consulted and they said, okay, let us start from the peace keeping zones and a few other places like that. This involves The Democratic Republic of Congo and others. Yes, I’ve agreed and they have offered us an opportunity of performing at the presidential villa too.

    Our performance at the conflict zones is to help douse tension and resolve conflicts. As it is today, the armed forces of Nigeria is constituting a schedule that will engage us for a year. They have all said that this is a good concept and it will go a long way to bring back peace in the minds of the people.

    However, I discovered that only a few of my people are the core artistes. The issue has to be looked into soon. What I have decided to do is to bring in some of the workers who are artistes but do not perform to be part of it. My predecessor in office, Professor Ahmed Yerima tried it and it worked. I’ve started talking to them about this, that we would draw them into performances. At least 70% of the staffs need to be engaged in the area of artistic performances. They should be ready to go troupe, because that is what we do; that is why we are here. We will also go into the society to engage other artistes and encourage them to be part of what we do. Even some were part of this first stage of states tours and we’ll do more.

     

    The fear is that in the next one year or so some of these artistes may not be able to perform. What are you doing to ensure continuity and safeguard their future?

    To me, the first thing was to look at the artistes I have on ground. The artistes have been suffering in this profession, without being well remunerated. Just like we had in football in the past. But today the story is different. Football gives money and players are well taken care of with their future well planned. People like Thunder Balogun and others had no booth when they played. Today, you see footballers earn big in pounds sterling, in dollars. I also feel what these artistes are feeling right now.

    They used their youth and virile period to perform and elevate the nation and now it is time to ensure that they go home with something in their pockets for their future. So, what I did was to interface with some of my friends in the private sector to get some insurance in place for these artistes. This is in form of one million naira insurance in case of accident or accidental death. This is already in place as I am talking to you now.

    I proposed this to the National Theatre also, so that this can be expanded and captured on the website. This is much better than nothing at all. Each artiste will be making an input of three thousand naira to be able to make it work. We also have another plan; for those who are in-charge we will endow them. In this case, we’ll interface with the producers of Coca cola so that they can get it when they are about to leave. When more money comes in, we will expand the endowments. I can assure you of that. We will never know where we can go from there. But that’s the widow’s might we have.

    Everything we do now is work in progress. If we have come this far, we hope to do more to ensure that this Troupe goes further than this. In one week of road travelling theatre, we have received this kind of accolade, that means we are on the right track and we will do more. The only way to go and keep going is to continue to try to keep the Troupe on its toes.

  • Troupe stages drama storytelling competition

    Troupe stages drama storytelling competition

    The National Troupe of Nigeria (NTN) will host the second edition of the yearly dramatised storytelling competition for schools in Lagos and Abuja in the last week of May and first week of June. The competition, which is opened to primary and secondary schools in Lagos and Abuja, will begin with the preliminaries and elimination stages.

    The maiden edition of the dramatised storytelling competition, which is held in line with the National Troupe’s objectives of providing a platform for the discovery and showcasing of talent from primary and secondary schools in Lagos.

    Also, the competition is being organised to celebrate Nigeria’s 100 years of existence. But specifically, the coordinator of the dramatised storytelling competition and Director of Drama of the National Troupe, Ms Josephine Igberaese said the programme would hold this year to complement the January 18, 1980 resolutions on storytelling adopted by the conference on folklore held under the auspices of the Centre for Nigeria cultural Studies, the Federal Ministry of Culture and United Nations Educational Scientific Cultural Organisation(UNESCO) to encourage the preservation and promotion of Nigeria folklore. “Since the storytelling is the science of the survival of old beliefs and customs in modern times, and the study of ancient observances and customs, the notions, beliefs, traditions, superstitions and prejudices of the common people-this therefore is the task ahead of those intellectual gathering of students from schools to examine how the dictates of storytelling could be effectively utilised to achieve national integration through this carefully selected sub-theme’’ Igberaese said.

    Artistic Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Troupe Mr Martin Adaji said the competition aims at ensuring meaningful communication of all aspects of storytelling. Adaji said it is designed to explore how storytelling could be utilised to correct inadequacies of the youth especially in the age of technological advancement. ‘’I am sure with technology where with just a dash on the Internet you can get all information you need, people will ask why story telling. But the facts are that our brains become more active when we tell stories. Whether it is a novel, a movie or simply something one of our friends is explaining to us, because they come in words and sounds, which are often by improvisation or embellishment. Since it is 100 years of Nigeria existence as a nation, the chosen theme cannot be anything but the unification or the act of bringing together the diverse and at times conflicting educational, social, political, economic, religious, ethnic and cultural element in our society into one single whole’’ Adaji said.

    He expressed optimism that the programme would in the long run achieve its intended aim which is to ‘re-organise and restructure our youth’s mindset to ward off destructive and insidious influences brought about by films, songs, magazines and telecommunication gadgets all of which becloud their young minds’’. Adaji said: “It is for this reason that we have initiated this project as a way of helping to bring back our fading storytelling tradition”.