THE 2022 festival season in Lagos kicks off on August 1 with the Eko Theatre Carnival, an 8-day feast’ of lavish artistic and cultural menus that is mainly domiciled in the Shomolu-Bariga-Akoka axis but with extensions to other parts of the city. It will end on August 7.
Initiated by the dancer-choreographer-actor-poet and director, Segun Adefila, fondly called Oriade, the ETC, a multi-disciplinary festival, is a project of the Crown Troupe of Africa, CTA, the 26-year old troupe of professional performers and art enthusiasts and activists that has become famous for its unique, often avant-garde creative contents and operational mode.
The Eko Theatre Carnival, ETC, debuted in 2016 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Crown Troupe of Africa, stated Adefila, adding, “The objective is to use the instrumentality of the arts in all of its dimensions to mobilise the community towards collective goals of unifying the diverse peoples and cultures for communal sharing and social, economic and environmental advancements.”
The ETC is, indeed, exemplary of a community mobilisation project designed to explore the vast, divergent and eclectic resources of the arts and culture in advocating and advancing the collective good of the slice of humanity that occupy that part of the multicultural city of Lagos.
In form and character, the Carnival is modelled after the traditional African community festival that encourages participation and contribution by nearly every person that shows up at its designated venues.
In its generous programing content, it usually has contributions from hundreds of participants, mostly youths in the creative vocations, and thousands of people — young and adults — as guests and audiences.
Though the Carnival’s main venue is the Crown Art Factory located in the densely populated Awofodu Street, off Pedro in Shomolu, the daily events, creatively tagged ‘feasts’, will happen at venues in other parts of the city such as Jelosimi Art Centre (Oshodi), Kininso Hub (Oregun), National Theatre (Iganmu), Freedom Park (Lagos Island), among others.
The 2022 edition is to consolidate the 26th anniversary of the founding of the Crown Troupe of Africa, which began early in the year.
On the Crown Troupe of Africa:
Stated Adefila in past communication: “The Crown Troupe of Africa is a Dance-Theatre Company launched on the 1st of June 1996 by a group of young persons who share a common belief in the viability of the arts as a tool for social re-engineering. The group is steeped in the art of creating new works that are socially-conscious, relevant, thought-provoking and empowering. From inception, the CTA has been involved in various forms of artistic endeavours such as theatrical productions, creative workshops and seminars organized both locally and internationally. The award winning company has also managed to keep in line with its founders’ laid down aims and objectives of:
• Research.
• Documentation.
• Organizing and participating in art workshops and seminars.
• Composing and experimenting with various genres of the arts such as poetry, visual art, dance, drama, and music to create new works.
• Producing and performing new works that are thematically relevant and are socially responsive.
• Engaging in art exchange programmes with local and overseas art companies.
The Crown Troupe of Africa is famous for its dance-theatre creations and has often been commissioned to compose new works around a variety of socially relevant issues as well as to present their works at organized events. Its works have been selected for events such as International Dance Day, International Theatre Day, Refugee Day, AIDS day, Lagos Book & Art Festival and other similar events.
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A draft programme released by the Festival Chief Priest, Adefila, outlines the daily events as follow:
DAY 1. Sunday, July 31.
Chef: Theatre Centrik
Menu: Eko Re
Genre: Intergrated Arts
Duration: 60 Minutes
Time: 4pm
Venue: Art Factory.
FILM SCREENING:
Title: Dark Room
Producer: Kagho Idhebor
Duration: 27 minutes
Time: 6pm
Venue: Art Factory, 32 Awofodu Street, Shomolu
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DAY 2. Monday, August 1
1st FeastChef: Professor Olu Obafemi.
Menu: Securing the Social Stage: Theatre and the Nigerian State
Genre: Seminar
Duration: 70 minutes
Time: 11am
Venue: Art Factory
2nd FeastChef: Ijolomo Dance Company
Menu: Akoko (Time)
Genre: Dance
Duration:15 minutes
Time: 4pm
Venue: Art Factory
3rd FeastChef: Kings and Queen Art Art Academy
Menu: Èmilòkàn.
Genre: Integrated Arts
Duration: 45 Minutes
Time: 5pm
Venue: Art Factory
FILM SCREENING
Title: Another Ordinary Day
Producer: Belinda Yanga-Agedah
Duration: 12 Minutes
Time: 6pm
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DAY 3. Tuesday, August
1st FeastChef: Kunle Afolayan
Menu: The Economics of Pop Culture
Genre: Seminar
Duration: 40 minutes
Time: 11am
Venue: Kongi’s Harvest, Freedom Park
2nd Feast Chef: Kunle Afolayan
Menu: Orisa
Genre: Film
Duration:
Time: 1pm
Venue: Kongi’s Harvest, Freedom Park
3rd Feast Chef: Green Arrow Arts
Menu: Journey
Genre: Dance
Duration: 20 minutes
Time: 4pm
Venue: Food Court, Freedom Park
4th Feast Chef: Crown Troupe.
Menu: Fela Ti So
Genre: Dance
Duration: 40 Minutes
Time: 5:30pm
Venue: Food Court, Freedom Park
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DAY 4. Wednesday, August 3
1st FeastChef: Kininso Koncept Productions
Menu: KF LAB
Genre: Workshop
Duration: 2 hours
Time: 10am-12Noon
Venue: Kininso Hub, 19 Sanyaolu Street, off Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun
2nd FeastChef: Footprints Art Ambassadors
Menu: Things That Cause Regret at Old Age
Genre: Integrated Arts
Duration: 25minutes
Time: 4pm
Venue: Art Factory
3rd Feast Chef: Bariga Poets Collective
Menu: Poetry Party and Music
Genre: Music and Poetry
Duration: 80 Minutes
Time: 5pm
Venue: Art Factory
FILM SCREENING:
Menu: Afterlife
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DAY 5. Thursday, August 4.
1st FeastChef: GOTHAD, Bariga Zone
Menu: Drum for Peace
Genre: Percussive Music
Duration: 20minutes
Time: 4pm
Venue: Beeriga, Ilaje Boat Jetty
2nd FeastChef: AfroCan (Collective)
Menu: AfroCan Jam Session
Genre: Dance
Duration: 3 hours
Time: 5pm
Venue: Beeriga, Ilaje Boat Jetty
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DAY 6. Friday, August 5
1st Feast Chef: Future of Dance Company
Menu: Orúko Mi Ni
Genre: Dance
Duration: 15 minutes
Time: 4pm
Venue: National Arts Theatre, Iganmu Lagos
2nd Feast Chef: ART “O” TEN
Menu: The Princess and the Wood Cutter
Genre: Intergrated Arts
Duration: 50 minutes
Time: 5pm
Venue: National Arts Theatre
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DAY 7. Saturday, August 6
1st Feast Chef: Footprints of David Arts Academy
Menu: The Rejected Stone
Genre: Theatre
Duration: 60 Minutes
Time: 4pm
Venue: Art Factory
2nd FeastChef: Whitestones Culture Ambassadors
Menu: Desperate Housewife
Genre: Theatre
Duration: 50 minutes
Time: 5pm
Venue: Kininso Hub, 19 Sanyaolu Street, off Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun.
3rd FeastChef: Good Deeds Puppetry
Menu: Let’s Talk
Genre: Puppet Theatre
Duration: 20 Minutes
Time: 5:30pm
Venue: Art Factory
4th Feast Chef: Sights and Sounds de L’Afrique
Menu: Percussive Communique
Genre: Drummusic
Duration: 20mins
Time: 6pm
Venue: Art Factory, Shomolu
5th Feast Chef: Zuri24 Media
Menu: Olu Jacobs, Doyen of Nollywood
Genre: Film
Duration: 35 minutes
Time: 7pm
Venue: Art Factory
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DAY 8. Sunday, August 7
1st FeastChef: Crown Troupe
Menu: Who Will Play With Me
Genre: Musical Theatre
Duration: 60 Minutes
Time: 4pm
Venue: National Arts Theatre, Iganmu Lagos
2nd Feast Chef: Just Theatre House
Menu: Un-Noticed
Genre: Intergrated Arts
Duration: 50 Minutes
Time: 5pm
Venue: Kininso Hub, 19 Sanyaolu Street, off Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun.
3rd Feast Chef: Modela
Menu: Couture
Genre: Fashion Show
Duration: 80 Minutes
Time: 5pm
Venue: National Arts Theatre
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GRAND FINALE!
VENUES:
Art Factory
Kininso Studios
National Theatre
Freedom Park
Jelosimi Art Centre
Seaside Cottage Theatre
Beeriga
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Reports from past edition:
