By: Mujidat Oyewole
An expert, Prof. Segun Oyewo, Department of Performing and Film Arts, University of Ilorin has called for the establishment of theatre performing company for teaching, research and community services.

Oyewo made the call during the 276th Inaugural Lecture, titled “Imagine a world without theatre and it’s realities on the stage and the environments in Nigeria”.

He therefore suggested the establishment of a performing company to compliment the academic arm and its tight academic schedule for teaching support unit, research and community services and revenue yielding theatre.

Also, the establishment of a finishing school, for employability of theatre graduates and the Professional Theatre Associations should serve as regulatory bodies to address the issue of liberal arts.

The expert said that there was need for advocacy for the strong commitment of the practitioners, which could be bound by signing of ‘professional oath’ to foster unity among professional art bodies.

“There is a strong need to use theatre in exploring links and connections within the African Diaspora, for the preservation of African culture, by signing active MoU among theatre competitions.

“This is to make African cultural studies compulsory for all categories of students in African university curricular, to make the theatre embody the spirit of unity in diversity within Africans in diaspora,” he said.

Oyewo said that there is a saying that ‘an artless society is a heartless society’ which highlights the significance of arts, including theatre, in bringing emotional depth, empathy and humanity to society.

“Without art, a society risks becoming soulless and disconnected. We can not fathom a world without theatre, because theatre has the power to educate, entertain and inspire.

“Theatre Arts bring people together, spark important conversations and provide a platform for self-expression.

“Without theatre, our world would be dull, less empathetic and less connected.

“Nigeria without theatre would lose a vital part of its cultural identity and creative expression,” he said.

The Don argued that theatre plays a significant role in preserving and promoting culture, tradition and history, saying that without theatre there would be less creative expression.

“Theatre often serve as a platform for social commentary, activism and advocacy, which will be severely diminished without theatre.

“A major rationale for theatre in local, national and cultural relations is  that theatre can be one means of healing the tragic situations, such as wars, hunger, poverty, confronting the world,” he said.

Oyewo said that a toxic environment negatively affects the theatre far more than it affects the other aspects of the society.

He noted that theatre also suffers severely in toxic environment, but from history, it’s resilience to bounce back stronger is legendary, giving theatre and practitioners a perceived sense of invisibility, rightly or wrongly.

The Don stressed that it was unimaginable for theatre to die, because it’s death will bring great cataclysm to the society, therefore theatre must survive, because, theatre is an essential aspect of life.

“The death of theatre is in the theatre, when it degenerates into sheer entertainment, show business, emphasising the licentious and the banal and obliterating good theatre, then it can mortify.

“We have seen theatre in its various form; live theatre and in the media and come to the conclusion that Arts management holds the panacea for sustenance of theatre in its positive form.

“This is by organising and producing programmes that will strike a balance between commercial reality and social responsibility, taking the various environments of its existence in Nigeria into consideration,” Oyewo said.

He therefore called on relevant governmental and non-governmental organisations to embark on digitalisation of theatre production, resource materials and cultural festivals.

Also, exhibiting them in schools, youth centres and museums of arts and antiquities to promote and transmit culture.