[COURTESY REMINDER] Films Everywhere, Theatre Somewhere? Musings on the direction of theatre in the postcolony through the works of Prof. Ahmed Yerima

[Adewunmi, Tobi]

"Our history is not just a series of dates and events...It is the story of our people's struggle for freedom" - Ahmed Yerima (Hard Ground, 2006)

Dear all

You are cordially invited to the forthcoming Roundtable in honor of Prof. Ahmed Parker Yerima, one of Nigeria's foremost playwrights and winner of the prestigious 2006 NLNG Prize for Literature (Drama).

Date & Time: Friday, 26th July, 2024 | 4pm WAT/10am CST

RSVP: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/97434585954?pwd=RThpdnF1cEx0ZDMyQW9FR1JHeE8rQT09

10 FACTS ABOUT PROF. AHMED YERIMA

1. Did you know that Prof. Ahmed Yerima is a renowned Nigerian playwright, director, and scholar, celebrated for his contributions to African theatre and performance studies?

2. Did you know that Prof. Ahmed Yerima's plays often explore themes of identity, culture, history, and social justice, offering powerful commentary on African societies?

3. Did you know that Prof. Ahmed Yerima is a mentor to many Nigerian playwrights and theatre practitioners, inspiring a new generation of artists and scholars, and in 2022, won a prestigious grant to train two Master of Arts in Directing students in professional theatre productions?

4. Did you know that Prof. Ahmed Yerima has taught at several universities in Nigeria including University of Ife, Ahmadu Bello University, Kwara State University, University of Lagos, and is currently the Deputy Vice Chancellor of Redeemer’s University, Ede, Osun State, Nigeria?

5. Did you know that Prof. Ahmed Yerima has published over 80 plays, over 40 articles in international journals, 12 scholarly books and 10 chapters in books, some of which have won international awards and are currently being used as compulsory reading texts in many theatre arts, film studies, African history, and English departments in tertiary institutions across the world?

6. Did you know that one of Prof. Ahmed Yerima’s plays, “Hard Ground”, won the best book in the drama category of the 2006 Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas literary prize, one of the most reputable prizes on literature in Africa?

7. Did you know that many of Prof. Ahmed Yerima’s plays such as The Trials of Oba Ovonramwen; Attahiru; Ameh Oboni the Grea;, The Angel; The Twist; Uncle Venyil; The Bishop and the Soul; The Wives; The Mirror Cracks; The Lottery Ticket; Kaffir's Last Game; The Sisters; Mojagbe; Little Drops; Heart of Stone; Yemoja; Orisa Ibeji; Otaelo; Abobaku; Hard Ground; Sardauna; Sanusi among others examine the legacy and contradictions of colonialism and its impact on African societies which are still being felt today?

8. Did you know that Prof. Ahmed Yerima's work often blends traditional cultural arts and proverbs, with modern themes and styles, creating a unique and powerful theatrical voice such as is uncommon in the post-Soyinka dramatic era?

9. Did you know that Prof. Ahmed Yerima was director-general of the Nigerian National Theatre, taking over its leadership some years after Okinba Launko, Prof. Femi Osofisan, and has previously served as artistic director of the National Troupe of Nigeria?

10. Did you know that Prof. Ahmed Yerima was the first and only student of Prof. Wole Soyinka admitted to the Dramatic Arts Department, University of Ife in 1977 and that by 1986, he had written and defended his PhD thesis titled, “Changes in the Nigerian Theatre with special Attention to Four Post-Soyinka Playwrights” under Prof. Katherine Joyce Worth, a distinguished expert on Modern theatre and one of the leading authorities on Samuel Beckett at the time?

Listen to his interview with Prof. Gbemisola Adeoti here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqFfKr1-4ro

Want to know more about Prof. Yerima’s scholarly and mentoring legacies? Don't miss the conversation this Friday!

#AhmedYerima
#ProspectiveNobelPrizeLaureate

[Oluwatoyin Adepoju]

Magnificent

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