The second Lagos theatre festival promised part
theatre, part real life and part journey through the city of Lagos; it
delivered on all fronts. The festival, aptly themed ‘A city that never sleeps,
is full of stories that never end’, was a three day event with four plays in
multiple shows. I saw the Sunday servings and wow! Was I thrilled!
The festival play ‘Make we waka’, was quite
the captivating audio tour. It was not uncommon to see a passerby or two get
caught up with an actor as they guided participating audience members in the
‘waka’. Make we waka gave us an
interesting and somewhat new angle to drama. It was innovative; it thrilled,
but as the evening wore on, it became obvious to me that it had some serious
competition.
In Waiting for a Lottery, the audience
participation was at once comical and exciting. The play opened with a faux
audition scene for a purported Nollywood blockbuster. The play mirrors the typical Lagos hustle; a
jungle where only the strong and ruthless survive. Anxious actors await the
audition that would propel them to stardom. This is the supposed lottery that
will change their lives; make dreams come true. The play also had some comical
references to the Nigerian situation that gave it extra depth. As would be
expected, hostilities soared when the hoax is uncovered, and this climaxes in a
slight twist to the tale. A slave driver scenario is introduced to the play and
the response from slaves sounds too close to Nigeria’s reality.
This reviewer believes that though this part of
the play was significant in painting the symbolism of defiance and the
resilience of Nigerians in the face of persistent corruption, oppression, and
tyranny, this is one part of the play which could have been shortened for
better effect. Nonetheless, the play had some very true-to-life characters, and
the actors did not disappoint at all. Suffice to say, Zara Udofia Ejoh’s Oxygen
Koncepts interpreted this play very nicely. Even Lekan Balogun, the scriptwriter
affirmed this.
Diagnosis is a Theatre lover’s
delight; anytime. It is the unexpected 419 tale where the usual Maga does not
pay afterall.
Shortly before Nigeria’s same sex marriage
legislation, Johnny and Danny successfully convince a Canadian mugu to fund
their NGO- ‘Rescue Project for the Gay Dwarf Community’. A cheque of one
million dollars gets into Johnny’s hands, and this sets a series of
complications, beginning with a bout of temporary amnesia.
In the ensuing panic, more people are let into
the big ‘maga’ deal and we see how greed can eat into the very core of human relationships.
Every one wants a cut, including an extremely comic pastor who speaks such
tongues as Rabbosh, AK47, Skelewu, Devil-Pullover, and Spartacus!
Filled with so many well thought-out twists, and
a tactical handling of deep issues, it is difficult not to fall in love with
this play. In the end, the schemers get schemed by their supposed ‘maga’, in
spite of their exertions.
Ifeoma Fafunwa’s ‘Imagine Nigeria productions,’
gave an undoubtedly beautiful performance of the story which screenplay was
done by Jude Idada.
The open theater experience was a beautiful one
for me, and this reviewer hopes that it will continue. “Double tuwaile” to the
British Council, and all its partners for facilitating this awesome platform.
I hope that plays at the next festival will be
accessible to larger audiences at a time (At possibly lower prices).
