Lagos- A showbiz manager, Mr Segun Adefila, said on Monday that in spite of the funding constraint, theatre business in the country was thriving.
He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that he never had a sponsor throughout the 19 years that he had managed his theatre business.
Adefila, a co-founder of the Crown Troupe of Africa, a theatre group, said that the business was borne out of love for the arts and the need to care for the underprivileged.
“Theatre used to be appreciated before now, but I think theatre has no problem; theatre is where it should be; it is the structure of the country that is the challenge.
“Things have to change because when you are well-fed and you are happy, that’s when you begin to think of what else you want to do with your time, how you want to enjoy yourself.
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“But you are not sure of when you are going to leave your home, when you are going to get to the place you are going to because of traffic jam.
“You are not sure of your security, you are thinking of NEPA bills when you don’t have light and all those things; all of these structures will militate against the success of the theatre business.
“So if theatre business must thrive, there has to be a holistic solution to so many challenges that we are facing.
“The artist will keep practicing even if nobody is there to watch the show.
“I’m particularly concerned about the young people, who still believe in what they do. These are young people living in a very economically disadvantaged area in Bariga.
“If these guys are not practicing art, what would they be doing?
“So what we are saying is let’s do our bit so that one day one marketer will decide to stop selling pure water, for instance, and decide to invest in the theatre business.
“So you as a practitioner, keep practicing your theatre, then the other person that will sell the product will sell it.“
NAN reports that the Crown Troupe of Africa currently has 30 young men and women with vast experience in theatre production worldwide. (NAN)