The CRAB: Journal of Theatre and Media Arts

Natural Endowment and Environmental Sustainability: A Paradigmatic Reading of Nwamuo‟s Wisdom of the King and Mbajiorgu‟s Wake Up Everyone

Chidiebere S. Ekweariri, Nnamdi Mbara — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

In all humanity, the earth is regarded as a veritable resource for the preservation of natural endowments. The reason is not far-fetched given its pride of place in the creation of wealth amongst nations. This paper is not ignorant of the fact that works already exist in this field of natural endowment and environmental sustainability but the need to look at this area from the theatrical perspective necessitates its investigation. Thus, this paper takes a simple approach of play-text analysis; to review the effects of deforestation, bush burning, oil spillage and other acts capable of defacing and dehumanizing the earth and adversely affecting the environmental sustainability of the resources therein. These are examined within the context of the discussion. This paper therefore, is of the opinion that the activities of man contribute immensely to the erosion of natural endowments which grossly affect the production of food for humans, herbs for medicine, raw materials for industrial growth and development as well as the retardation in infrastructural development. It recommends among other things that for natural resources to be sustained, proactive measures should be taken to first of all to ensure the preservation and sustenance of the earth surface.

Assessing Readers‟ Perception of the Influence of Ownership and Control in Newspaper Coverage of 2014 Nigerian National Conference

Makut Simon Macham — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The Nigerian National Conference 2014 remains a milestone in the nation‘s political development. While many factors shaped its outcome, opinions in certain quarters however suggest that the media was not only central in disseminating information about its planning, proceedings and outcome to the public, but also that ownership and control influenced how the conference was reported. This paper therefore seeks to validate or negate this claim. Using the simple random sampling procedure, a survey was conducted where 700 questionnaires were administered in the six area councils of the Federal Capital Territory to elicit readers‘ perception of the influence of ownership and control on the coverage of the 2014 Nigerian National Conference by Nigerian Tribune, Daily Trust and Champion newspapers. The research found that most readers perceived that ownership and control considerations influenced the coverage of the 2014 National Conference and that professional journalism ethics were not properly adhered to in the coverage of the conference. This created lack of trust, contempt, un-believability and even loss of patronage of the newspapers by certain readers. This paper therefore recommends that Nigerian newspaper publishers must allow professional judgment by editorial staff to prevail in generating, packaging and disseminating news content so as to maintain the trust and confidence of readers who are likely to desert them if they perceive that they are influenced by ownership and control factors rather than ethical journalistic considerations. It also calls attention to the negative consequences of readers‘ perception of ownership and control architecture.

Commercialisation of Popular Culture in Cinematic Ideology: A Critical Reading of A Trip to Jamaica

Ibe Ogbobuike Ibe — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The growing commercialisation of popular culture in Nigeria is traceable to the increasing volume of Nigerian video films constantly released both on formal and informal platforms. These video films are mediated cultures which assimilate popular aspirations and dreams of the mass audiences. This essay is therefore aimed at exposing how commercialisation of popular culture can be concealed in ideology with the ultimate aim of box office triumph. By so doing, it critically examines Robert Peters‘ A Trip to Jamaica and its sequels using film theory and criticism. These films are contextualised as commercialisations of popular culture in bald-faced ideology. It is found that the sensationalism of anticipation created before the release of contemporary commercial films helps disguise their commercial nature to boost box office sales.

Conceptualising and Mapping of the New Testament Climate of Christianity

John O. Obineche — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

No Abstract

Folktales Among the Tiv People of Nigeria: Prospects for Combating Economic Recession

Jacob Shimrumun Ioraa, Tyodoo Iyue — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

From year 2016 to date, Nigeria has been in recession, one of the worst so far in her economic and financial history. The attendant consequences of the recession are mass poverty, high rate of unemployment and insecurity among others. There are claims from the Buhari government that recession is over. This is far from the truth. Obviously, creative measures need to be taken to stabilize the economy and bring it to equilibrium. It is on this premise that Tiv folktales is studied in its oral form to bring to fore how it could be harnessed to strengthen indigenous norms and values to combat economic recession. In this study, selected Tiv folktales are used and the study found that folktales when communally performed its didactic quality endears it to the people. This study recommends that, President Buhari‘s anti-recession strategy tagged: Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) launched on 5th April, 2017 should harness folktales as a medium of communicating the designed message to the populace. The study contends that in a country degraded by greed, individualism and excessive materialism, the emphasis on solidarity, brotherly feeling and communal existence as embedded in indigenous norms and values should be strengthened in order to get the country out of economic recession.

Film as a Mass Communication Medium: Unpacking Its Encoding and Decoding Processes

Oluwadamilola O. Oshodi, Uwaoma Chimezie Nwazue — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Communication is the art sending and receiving information, idea or messages from one end to another. The medium of communication could take diverse means which could be traditional, formal, informal or even electronic. The content of information to be communicated from a sender ultimately determines the medium or media to be employed by the sender. Film as an electronic medium of communicating ideas passes through stages before reaching the decoder which could be referred to as viewers. The peculiarity of film medium is embedded in its ability to be decoded by all classes of people in the society since it is an audio /visual medium. The codes in filmmaking which the film maker encodes to arrive at the finished film product is decoded by the target audience whom the message is meant for. The decoding of film language transcends from the script conception to the final level which is distribution. Using a comparative analytical method, this paper sees the process of film making as an art of encoding a message both to the film makers and the targeted audience who get to see the film as a finished product. The success of every film is dependent on the ability of all film designers on set to understand codes from the director as the chief interpreter. This paper sees a communication breakdown when the methodology employed by the film maker does not deliver the intended message to the audience via the film crew. It therefore posits that right coding system should be judiciously applied for proper decoding by the viewers.

Gender and Power Dynamics in Nigerian Video Films

Enakeno Victoria Oju, Isaiah U. Ilo — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Power indices are reflected in the relations between men and women. However, the power relations tend to privilege the men while the women are totally relegated to the background. Despite efforts to find a lasting solution to this problem, the discrimination still lingers on. This is also reflected in Nigerian video films where the portrayal of gender intersects the reflection of different aspects of power among characters. Again, even recent changes in gender construction still proved roles were along male and female lines. This study x- rays the power dynamics in the intersections of gender portrayed in Nigerian Video Films. The paper embraces a textual content analysis to look at how Nigerian Video Films reflect power relations between women and men and how they define the positions of men and women in society. This study concludes that Nigerian video films have helped and are still helping in the direction and construction of roles and positions in society as well as in the relegation of women to the background in the scheme of things. Hence it was recommended that there was need for the continued challenge of female subordination in Nigerian video films, reorientation of mindsets, and a deliberate reconstruction of production processes, the gender of personnel involved in production and film content to get balanced gender and better portrayal of women. The need to bridge the gender gap and pursue gender equality and equity through films is emphasized.

A Critical Linguistic Interpretation of Intertextuality and Ideology in Ben Okri‟s Poetry

Ikenna Kamalu, Oyeh Otu — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

This study explores the use of ideology and language in Ben Okri‘s books of poetry: An African Elegy and Mental Fight. Previous studies on Okri have concentrated on the theme and style of his fiction. Consequently, little critical attention has been given to his poetry. This study is aimed at drawing critical attention to the ideological and rhetorical orientations that underlie his poetry and how intertextuality has enhanced the communication between the poems and precursor texts. A careful study of Okri‘s poetry style reveals that he incorporates textual and ideological insights from several sources and from his own works in the process of creating knowledge and meaning. This study enables us to understand how Okri enriches his creative force and universe by drawing profusely from a large corpus of precursor texts. Therefore, working within the tenets of critical discourse analysis (CDA) this study examines Okri‘s exploration of the resources of intertextuality and reveals how it has enabled him to construct new ideological and semantic frames.

Issues of the Self and Othering in Community Theatre Practice

Olagoke Olorunleke Ifatimehin — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Theatre has continued to serve as a vehicle via which culture expresses itself. This is even more abundant in Africa. Playing together and imitating one another have been a performative occurrence via which Africans in various contexts elucidate matters of serious concern for edification, correction and education. The practice of community theatre has sprung from a desire both to demonstrably authenticate African indigenous performance forms as communal practices and to deploy same as forum for negotiating development for African communities. It has served as a response to Western postulations on the theatre of Africa and as a functional endeavour to push the frontiers of the advancement of the people of Africa, especially rural, forward. Essentially a social research practice, community theatre uses drama as a means for achieving dialogue, participation and communal action for change.The subject matter of the drama is usually derived from findings of research conducted within the community. However, there appears a deliberate attempt by communities to create fictional characters with antithetical traits as ‗others‘ rather than as members of the same community, as self. This habit tends to push the blame on those in the minority, on the voiceless, and therefore inferior, among them.This paper adopts a postcolonial clout in case studying two community theatre exercises in northern Nigeria in order to underscore likely behaviours which add to the underdevelopment of Africa today. Community dialogue and participation for positive action is strained in environments where the dominant group (the self) is presented as perfect, therefore faultless, while the minority (the other) is represented as criminal, and sometimes voiceless. The Zuru and Sumaila experiences reveal that classification of people as self and/or other does not promote the basic goals of community theatre nor would it help instigate any sustainable development.

Content Factor in Local Media Programmes: A Study of Music Videos, Sexuality and the NBC Code

Rita Adaobi Sunday-Kanu — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

This study evaluates the contents of music video in local media stations particularly in radio and television programmes. Emphasis is on the propagation of popular cultures particularly music videos and tapes on media programmes as a means of constructing an ideal society, representation of national values and cultural identity. Hence, trending issues on the regular representation of female nudity and sexually provoking music tape and video on local media programmes are discussed. Data collection was via review of related literatures, personal observations and in-depth interview. The role of NBC (Nigerian Broadcasting Commission) and its code in ensuring promotion of cultural value in programme content was examined. However, result proves that lack of proper and consistent enforcement of the policies by concerned agencies may have contributed to this pending issue. Lack of political stability has also paved way for continual neglect of such policies guiding musical products on daily media broadcast.

Music in Early-Childhood Education and Whole Child Development: Kindergarten Teachers‟ Perception in Oye LGA, Ekiti State

Joseph Agofure Idogho — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Singing and music which are significant aspects of the arts / theatre play important roles in every culture; especially in children development. Music is undoubtedly present in many aspects of our lives, television, movies, religion worship, celebrations etc. From birth, parents instinctively use music to calm/soothe children, to express their love and joy, to engage and interact. However, as important as this art to the child holistic development; it is underutilized among children care-givers and kindergarten teachers in Nigeria. This study documents the perceptions of kindergarten teachers and pupils in Oye LGA Ekiti, Nigeria on the import of learning through music/song in the classroom. Focus group discussions were conducted with forty-eight (48) teachers and thirty (30) pupils (age 4-6). Participants were asked their knowledge of and attitude towards music/song as classroom instructional strategy. Constant comparison analysis or method revealed that the teachers have a good knowledge of the roles of music/song in the classroom. However, factors like pressure to complete the syllabus, fear of losing respect before students/colleagues and the noise it generate inhibit the use of music/song in the classroom by teachers. The pupils admit that they enjoy learning through music/song as it helps them to assimilate easily. The findings suggest that music/song is a veritable tool for whole child development, though tight academic schedules affect its acceptance in the classroom teaching-learning setting. This study therefore suggests that policy makers and government must, therefore, train teachers in the deliberate utilization of music / songs in the teaching-learning process particularly in early childhood education setting.

Nollywood and Hollywood Posters: A Comparative Analysis of Design Principles

Amiesia Ihekwoaba , Isaac Lasbrey Ihekwoaba — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Posters are one of the main mediums for disseminating information as well as creating awareness of products and events. The Nollywood industry like most other organizations has explored this medium to bring to the public‘s attention the latest and trending films which the industry produces rapidly. The objective of the study is to examine the Nollywood poster and its design output in terms of colour, typography and photography in comparison to its Hollywood counterpart, analyse Nollywood posters using modern principles and techniques, examine if Nollywood posters create any impact on the audience and try to examine what it lacks in terms of principles design methods and proffer ways to improve on them so as to meet up with international standard of graphic designing which is aimed at boosting the industry‘s outcome in terms of increased viewership. Suggested solutions were proffered.

Oil Exploitation and the Quest for Restructuring: Echoes from the Creeks in Anekwe Emmanuel's The Liquid Black-Gold

Hameed Olutoba Lawal — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The perceived marginalisation of some of the federating units of the entity called Nigeria in devolution of power and management of natural resources was what ignited agitations for restructuring of the federating units. The income from oil which was and is still a boom to the Nigerian Economy is a doom to the Nigeria Delta region where the oil wells are located. Years of exploration by foreign oil companies have left in its trail sorrow, tears and blood. This manifested in environmental degradation as evidenced in pollution of water resources and destruction of farmlands. Irked by the generation of wealth to manage the federating units from their land without adequate compensation, the region is the most vocal in agitation for resource control and restructuring. Militancy to draw the attention of the Federal Government to their plight culminated in destruction of oil installations. Kidnapping and hostage taking as dramatised in the film, The Liquid Black-Gold. The armed struggled in the Creeks of the Niger Delta region of Nigeria is captured to sensitise the authorities and populace on the bleeding poverty that breads crime. There is also the lampooning of the community leaders who are the collaborations with the multi-national companies in the exploitation of their own kinsmen for self aggrandisement. The cinematic narration advocate for change of mindset from combative approach to arrest the attention of the stakeholders to dehumanising conditions of the Niger Delta Creeks to embracing constructive engagement as typified in dialogue and persuation. There is also the pricking of the conscience of the representatives of the people and the oil companies to de-emphasize pecuniary gains for service to humanity. It is believed that, adequate rehabilitation of human and natural resources in the region could stem the tide of agitations for resource control and restructuring.

The Reinvention of the “Legend of Robinhood” in Femi Osofisan's Once Upon Four Robbers

Peter O. Aihevba — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

This paper takes a close look at one outstanding theatrical technique that Femi Osofisan has frequently leveraged upon to drive home his socialist ideology. In many of his plays, Osofisan has consistently employed the adaptation/revisioning technique in his drama. This paper carefully examines how this technique is effectively employed in Once Upon Four Robbers to elevate poor robbers to social reformers in close consonance with the legend of Robin Hood in Sherwood of London He places the robbers in the shadow and pedestal of the celebrated Robin Hood thereby giving them a noble image. In carrying out this research, the analitical methodology was adopted in gathering useful materials from the library and the internet. The paper concluded by applauding this Osofisan‘s adaptation technique, and recommended that the style be widely embraced by other Nigerian dramatists.

The Playwright as a Global Interpreter: An Examination of Femi Osofisan‟s Adaptation Techniques in Wèsóo Hamlet

Femi Adedina — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Adaptation of literary works, most especially classic plays is a tricky business that tasks the writer. Adapting a well-known Shakespearean play like Hamlet to fit the Ijebu culture in Yorubaland, Western Nigeria, West Africa would have been an arduous task for a neophyte writer, but for a mature writer like Babafemi Osofisan, it is an opportunity to experiment. This paper explores the innovative techniques Osofisan used in transplanting a global tragic play into an African setting and soil. It also examines the various innovative themes and ideas introduced into the adaptation making it different from other adapted plays. The paper finally registers the challenges the playwright must have faced in localizing a play like Hamlet while exploring global issues like the impact of tobacco companies on less developed countries (LDC).

Patterns of Production and Aesthetic Elements in Some Nollywood Films

Joe Odedina — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Film is one of the most important communication tools that spur the development of the human race. The reason for this is because of its power to critically evaluate the follies of man through the illusion of moving images. In the Nigerian cinema scholarship, however, the need to carry out a thorough study on the production elements and aesthetics of the content of Nollywood films is critical. The objectives of this study are to evaluate the pattern of production elements in some Nollywood films, examine the aesthetic values in the content of these films and observe the use of spectacle in the films. The paper adopted textual analysis method to interrogate three Nollywood films, with a view to ascertain the creative use of production elements that generate aesthetic values for the films. These elements were observed to enhance the aesthetic content of some Nollywood video films. The study concludes that Nollywood film emphasises the use of colourful costumes and beautiful decors to enhance the aesthetic value in the pattern of production elements of its films.

Belief in Witchcraft and Sorcery in African Culture: A Philosophical Analysis

Edward Uzoma Ezedike — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

This paper undertakes a philosophical examination of the widely held belief in witchcraft and sorcery in Africa particularly, and by implication, in other societies of the world. Witchcraft, sorcery and their associated beliefs, have over the centuries, been sustained in the consciousness of humans by religion and culture, and find explicit focus in popular television, films (like Nollywood) and in fiction. The study grapples with a fundamental problem of ascertaining whether such beliefs can be justified on epistemological grounds. The big question is whether the belief in the existence of witchcraft and sorcery is simply a myth or an incontrovertible fact? In attempting to address this question, the paper employs a critical method using basic epistemological tools for its analysis. Our objective is to establish a rational basis for either accepting or rejecting, elucidating or deconstructing such widely accepted beliefs. Findings, here, however, show that such beliefs exist only at the realm of the mystical; and apparently lacks scientific and epistemological justifications. The paper concludes that, though, the belief in witchcraft and sorcery helps to explain some mysterious events beyond science, there exists some epistemological gaps and missing links begging for further explanations.

Post-colonial Appropriation of English Language: Case of ELF and L1 features in HIV/AIDS Consultations in South Africa

Diana B. Njweipi-Kongor — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

This study addresses a gap in medical research, especially in the field of HIV/AIDS, namely, a lack of sufficient data-driven analytical investigation into the linguistic and conversational nature of doctorpatient communication in English as lingua franca (ELF) in a multilingual setting in South Africa. It is a qualitative analytical study that investigates the features of ELF and L1 between doctors and patients with different L1s during HIV/AIDS consultations in a postcolonial medical setting in the Western Cape Province. The data consist of transcribed audio-recording of HIV/AIDS consultations conducted in ELF. Discourse analysis (DA) was used to decipher the discursive features through which interactants mark their appropriation of English as a socio-cultural tool with the use of their regional ELF. From this perspective, the results reveal characteristic linguistic features of ELF usage like borrowing, linguistic transference from L1, the use of analogy, code-switching and local metaphors, all resulting from processes of indigenization and hybridization. The study therefore shows that there are some linguistic and socio-cultural specificities of HIV/AIDS consultations that show that South Africans use ELF during this discourse not just to include interactants who would otherwise have been excluded or who would have been just minimally involved but also to put their stamp of ownership and appropriation of the English they use.

Producing the Documentary Film: The Role of a Scriptwriter

Teddy Thaddeus Hanmakyugh — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The art of filmmaking is an exciting and glamourous venture which has also grown to become a highly industrialized and mechanized medium. As a pervasive medium, film combines both aural and visual components to create an illusion of reality that influences the thinking and behavioural patterns of viewers. The documentary film is employed for purposes far more than entertainment as it also serves as one of the most powerful instruments for social influence in the world. This paper examines the artistic and aesthetic considerations in film production with a particular emphasis on the script. The film script is generally known to be a blue print from which a film is made. It contains a detailed statement of action, dialogue, artistic and mechanical directions that provides the basis for production. This paper examines the difference between a fiction and non-fiction film script. Whereas in most cases the writer‘s ideas are complete in almost every detail for the making of a fiction film, some documentary films however, allow the filmmaker some latitude to deal with the unpredictable and the uncontrollable. Three principal stages in script development are examined carefully and methodically to enable the reader gain insight into the importance and dynamics of a good documentary script. This paper advocates that whether a documentary film is meant to promote the corporate image of an organization, government propaganda, educational/ instructional or even a newsreel, a thorough research and a well-structured script is a sine qua non as it is the basic foundation upon which the entire film would be sustained.

Performance Context of Storytelling Events vis-à-vis Western Civilisation and Global Influences

Taku Victor Jong — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Western civilisation, modernism and globalisation have created new patterns and shifts of all that were traditionally assigned to the performance context of the storytelling event. This article will expose us to recent changes of the storytelling event as far as setting and the role of the narrator are concerned. In this wise we shall observe how the upsurge of new settings and the birth of new actors and narrators have greatly influenced and informed the performance context of the storytelling event. These recent changes go a long way to debunk assertions and assumptions that Western civilisation has come to kill storytelling in Africa, especially in urban and semi urban areas. Informed by New Historicism as a sociological approach, these analyses will be founded on observations of the different channels which the modern storytellers have to tell their stories to members of an audience resident in settings void of the fireside and the fragrance of the mahogany and umbrella trees. The storytelling event, in the presence of a new setting, actors and audience, has gradually taken African cultures and traditions to a global market space where the rules are now being dictated by modern forms of communication and the internet.

Theatre and Anthropology in Amo Runzu Iyani Farming Festival of North Central Nigeria

Solomon Obidah Yamma — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

This paper investigates the theatrical and anthropological aspects of Amo Runzu Farming festival with the aim of unearthing its aesthetics. It is a festival that has existed since time immemorial and has started losing its substance and significance as a result of lack of documentation. Farming festivals in Africa that are theatrical have not received meaningful attention from writers/ critics in validating the aesthetics that such festivals offer the artistic space. This paper utilizes anthropology in the style of Turner and Schechner to validate the salient and critical aspects that Amo Runzu Iyani farming festival gives out for analysis. Anthropology and ontology touch on social relations and culture, and the nature and relations of being. The paper attempts to answer questions through a narrative style of presentation, such as: What is Iyani? What are the performance idioms in Iyani? How can Iyani be more beneficial in a contemporary competitive artistic space of today? An idiom is a language that is peculiar to a people but theatre has a way of mediating through any activities that are spectacular and have the potentials and vivacity of appealing to other people transcending their sociological and traditional audience spaces. This paper uses a sociological approach in investigating Iyani festival in order to evaluate the substance that is theatrical and anthropological in the festival. Consequently, the paper will be of benefit theatre practitioners and anthropologists.

Issues and Challenges of Language in Contemporary Nigerian Music: A Study of Selected Musical Videos

Emmanuel C. Emasealu, Clive I. Krama, Ifeyinwa Uzondu — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Music is among the ancient art form that has been in existence since the creation of man. Through the medium of music, cultures and belief system of a people have been nurtured, preserved, sustained and transferred from one generation to another. Many young people in Nigeria today tend to be cut off from their traditional roots, due to urban life styles and new ways of socialization; occasioned by social media network platforms. This idea has affected the social lives of this millennium, as western life styles are richly propagated in most contemporary music in Nigeria. At the same time, some musical artistes have pushed the boundaries of this western ideology beyond the frontiers of mere entertainment. These artistes aesthetically combine local dialects with other languages in their lyrical composures to produce worthwhile songs. This paper discusses the social relevance of selected contemporary music in Nigeria and their effects on indigenous language culture. It is approached through a content analysis of the musical videos from selected songs. Findings of the work show that most children are developing high level of interest in learning and socializing with such songs, owing to their local embellishments. Hence, it is the conclusion of this paper that this sudden interest could help in rejuvenating, promoting and consolidating indigenous languages in Nigeria, among other utilitarian experiences. It recommends that, considering the essentialities of music to cultures, music should be used as a paradigmatic approach to enliven the interest in local languages in Nigeria

Issues and Challenges of Language in Contemporary Nigerian Music: A Study of Selected Musical Videos

Emmanuel C. Emasealu, Clive I. Krama, Ifeyinwa Uzondu — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A Critical Interpretation of Set and Light Designs in Kiriji War Production

Kunle Henry Afabor, S. Joseph Bankola Ola-Koyi — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Set and light are two critical components of the mise-en-scene exhibition in a typical stage production. However, these two areas of aesthetic expression suffered untold neglect in visual /artistic appreciations especially in theatrical theory and criticism. This paper examines the interpretative and vital roles of set and light designs in Kiriji War play - a Yoruba performance staged on the 30th of January 2017, at the Olabisi Onabanjo University. In deploying simplicity and unity theory propounded by E. G. Craig in the text, Scene, these researchers employed participant observation, library study, and analytical research methods in data collection and interpretation, while the 2017 stage production of Wale Ogunyemi‘s Kiriji War drama text is used as a case study. Findings reveal that set and light are not only deployed in the establishment of different locations, used as transitional and transformation devices but also utilized in projecting the various gestures, moods and atmosphere of the production which contributed to its overall aesthetic impacts. It is then concluded that the effective deployment of these two mise-en-scene components along with other elements of visual communication in this production enables the artistic director to display his meditative roles and achieve his interpretative aims within the vision of the director of the production.

Nollywood and Human Security in the Niger Delta: Hilda Dokubo's Asawana as Paradigm

Oluwatayo B. Isijola — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The enduring fight against terrorism in global and local spaces has drawn attention to the crucial need for security in its preventive and curative measures. In developing nations, such as Nigeria, terrorism has undermined good governance with negative consequences; fostering further underdevelopment. Particularly, insurgency in the Niger Delta region does not only terrorise its populace, but also impact negatively on the nation‘s economy. In pursuant of the Presidential Amnesty programme of 2009, to curb the menace of insurgency in the region, Hilda Dokubo‘s Centre for Creative Arts Education (CCAE) was charged with creating ways of developing the creative talents of ex-militants meaningfully. In 2015, Dokubo embarked on a film production, titled Asawana, with quite a number of trained ex-militants on the production team, both as cast and crew. This study examines Dokubo‘s Asawana as a paradigm for counterterrorism through human security in the engagement of ex-militants in the Niger Delta region. It is an analytical study that employs the descriptive research approach to achieve the set objectives of examining strategies for the classification, development, and the process of engagement of the ex-militants in Asawana. Thus, primary data is derived from in-depth interviews and non-participant observation. The study utilizes the emerging theory of Human Security, which presupposes that human vulnerability diminishes with self- empowerment and observes that job-placing is a challenge to the Amnesty programme, and the Niger Delta genre of Nollywood is rich for a robust exploration that can integrate creative hands in the region. Thus, there is the need for Government to investment in this regard as job creation strategy for young people in the region, especially creative hands amongst the exmilitant who seek reintegration into the society.

The Performance/Art of Storytelling: Itsekiri “Ita Ye” in Focus

Alero Uwawah Agbonkonkon-Ogeide — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

No Abstract