Sound Equipment Fabrication and Values in Nigerian Theatre Staging Experiences

Abstract

The main points of this paper is to discover ways of fabricating sound and sound effects equipment for theatrical productions in Nigeria have become of essence since most educational theatres cannot afford western sound and sound effects equipment. Even when available, they are old fashioned, compared to the computerized nature of sound and sound effect in the 21st century Europe and American theatres. It is agreed that the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) catalogue offers a wide range of sound and sound effects which are actually most frequently in demand, but in terms of timing (i.e. duration), the availability and thirdly, since theatre is part of the people’s culture, then it will be a prudent idea for the sound and sound effects selected for a production in Nigeria should be relevant to our contemporary environment and culture of the people where the play is produced. This study utilises library, field work as well as textual review to facilitate authentic actualisation of data gathered. The investigation concludes that Nigerian Technical Directors should discover ways of fabricating sound and sound effects equipment that would suit and enhance their theatre performances in the 21st century’s black theatre enclave.