- Bolanle Austen-Peters collaborates with the Lagos state governor Sanwo-Olu to host the Lagos International Theatre Festival (LITF)
- The theatre festival will be held at four venues across Lagos state between November 15 and 17
- The festival will have workshops, masterclasses, and panel segments which will be anchored by seasoned professionals
Bolanle Austen-Peters, a renowned theatre director, producer, and award-winning filmmaker who produced House of Gaa and the Funmilayo Ransom Kuti biopic, has organized the Lagos International Theatre Festival (LITF). In conjunction with the Lagos state government, which proudly supports the arts and culture that thrive within its borders, the festival will be held between November 15 and 17, 2024 and will assemble creative talents worldwide.
The theatre enthusiast hosts the festival with the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and Creative Arts and corporate organisations like First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Dorman Long Engineering, Amstel Malta, and others.
“Lagos International Theatre Festival celebrates creativity and diversity”: Bolanle Austen-Peters. Photo: Bolanle Austen-PetersSource: Instagram
Kehinde Bankole, Broda Shaggi make board of LITF
LITF is set to celebrate creativity and diversity, featuring performances from both local and international artists. The festival’s advisory and governing boards comprise notable figures such as Joke Silva, Jahman Anikulapo, Donald Duke, Samuel Perry aka Broda Shaggi, Kehinde Bankole, Osas Ighodaro, John Momoh, Karl Toriola, Yemi Idowu, Ron Kunene, Ladi Chinede, and Yewande Zaccheus among others.
The festival will also feature workshops, masterclasses, and panel discussions anchored by seasoned professionals. These sessions will provide invaluable learning opportunities for aspiring artists and practitioners. Attendees will also have the chance to explore a vibrant marketplace featuring theatre-related merchandise.
A proponent of theatre and stage play, Austen-Peters said the creative industry is the heart of every thriving nation. She also noted that Nigeria is blessed with imaginative creativity and abundant talents.
“This is what God has blessed us with—.the only infinite resource. We must provide a platform where our creatives can explore, tell our stories, and export our positive philosophies and values to the world.”
The festival will be held across four venues: The National Theatre, Muson Centre, Terra Kulture, and John Randle Centre, all in Lagos, to ensure that attendees enjoy diverse performances of theatre repertory, musicals, skits, and showcasing the richness of African culture and storytelling.
Celebrating the idea behind LITF, the Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Toke Benson-Awoyinka, noted that theatre can inspire, challenge, and connect people and remind them of their shared humanity.
The Group Head of Marketing & Corporate Communications at FirstBank, Folake Ani-Mumuney, expresses the bank’s delight in participating in LITF and the opportunity to contribute to nation-building and support the creative arts value chain.
Tinubu renames National Theatre after Wole Soyinka
Earlier, TheTalk.NG reported that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu named the National Arts Theatre in Iganmu, Lagos, after Nobel Laureate Professor Wole Soyinka to commemorate his 90th birthday.
Tinubu made it known in a letter he wrote and signed to the iconic literary giant commemorating his 90th birthday.
In his tribute, the president noted that the literary giant, the first African to win the Nobel Literature Prize in 1986, deserves all the accolades for reaching this milestone.
Source: TheTalk.NG
