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It’s that time of
the year again when the best (and worst) of the Hollywood rabble gather
their best frocks and dish out golden statues to each other. Yes, the
Oscars are here with a new set of movies and stars vying for your
consideration. So what’s new this year? Well, the Academy has decided to
go all young and hip by handing presenting duties to Anne Hathaway and
James Franco. They are the Academy’s youngest hosts in its 83-year
history and might set the tone for future awards ceremonies. Both have
displayed very credible comedic skills in the past, so hopefully there
shouldn’t be too many forced jokes or awkward silences. The 10-film
format for Best Picture has been retained after been introduced last
year. Thankfully, we have a stronger field to pick from this year, so
average films like ‘District 9’ and ‘The Blind Side’ did not creep into
the list. When the likes of ‘Shutter Island’ and ‘The Town’ do not make
the final cut, then you know it’s a tough year.

Best Picture

After the commercial
and critical disappointment of 2009/2010, it has been a decent year for
cinema. The shackles of the global recession were shaken off and people
started going to the movies again. Filmmakers must have missed the memo
because this year’s contenders can hardly be described as feel-good
movies.

‘Toy Story 3’ is
probably the most uplifting of the bunch and even that was known to make
some adult viewers cry. It won’t win but its mere presence is another
testament to the movie-making prowess of Pixar studios.

‘The Fighter’, a bleak biopic of boxer Micky Ward and his junkie brother, is a fine film about redemption and human sacrifice.

‘Black Swan’, is a
neo-noir about a young woman’s struggles with abuse and psychosis. It
will not be to everyone’s taste and this will affect its chances.

‘Inception’ is many
people’s favourite film of 2010 but sadly, its popularity will count
against it. Blockbusters simply do not win in this category.

‘127 Hours’ is a wonderful true-life tale of triumph against the odds but is perhaps too avant garde for Academy tastes.

‘The Kids are
Alright’ is a well rendered account of the realities of single-sex
marriage but it meanders a bit towards a conclusion.

‘True Grit’ is a
remake of the John Wayne classic, a proper Western with delicious vistas
and searing individual performances. The story lacks a bit of depth,
however, and will most likely count against it. Besides, everyone
prefers the original, right?

This predictably
leaves it down to a dogfight between two films: ‘The Social Network’,
and ‘The King’s Speech’. Both have very different types of appeal but if
there is any justice, ‘The Social Network’ will win. David Fincher’s
film about the advent of Facebook is the best all-round film of 2010.
One suspects though that ‘The King’s Speech’ will trump it. The film,
about King George VI’s efforts to overcome his stammer, is the kind that
usually excites the Academy. Where ‘The Social Network’ represents new
age cinema, ‘The King’s Speech’ is a hark back to the classical era and
this might well sway the voters.

Best Director

It is an absolute
travesty that ‘Inception’s Christopher Nolan is not even nominated in
this category. The Academy still turns its nose up at commercially
successful films and ‘Inception’ happens to be the latest victim.

The Coen Brothers
are an Oscar favourite, but ‘True Grit’ is far from their best work.
Nolan, on the other hand, has delivered a filmmaking tour-de-force. Love
it or hate it, one cannot ignore the sheer creative audacity of
‘Inception’. Nolan’s loss will almost certainly be David Fincher’s gain.
‘The Social Network’ is masterfully directed. A movie subject as banal
as Facebook is somehow made engaging by Aaron Sorkin’s sumptuous script
and Fincher’s close directorial control. Of the 82 films that have won
Best Picture, 60 of them have also won Best Director. It would be no
surprise if Fincher goes home with the two gongs.

Best Actor

You might as well
give Colin Firth the award now. In truth, none of the other contenders
would even put up much of a fight. Not that their performances are bad —
far from it — but Colin Firth ticks almost all the Academy boxes.
Period film. Check. English accents. Check. Protagonist struggling with
disability. Check. Firth’s performance as the stuttering King George VI
is so vulnerable, that it has you rooting for him from the word go. It
is good to see Jeff Bridges’ name up again after his win last year. For
too long, he has been overlooked by the Academy. In any other year,
Jesse Eisenberg’s portrayal of Mark Zuckerberg, the Facebook founder,
would have been a surefire thing but this is Firth’s year.

Best Actress

Natalie Portman’s
name is probably already engraved on the golden statue for her
performance in ‘Black Swan.’ Yet, riveting as it is, her performance
rarely extends beyond timid and frightened in Aranofsky’s film. In a
film which plays heavily on duality, one craves a tougher alter ego to
emerge from the shadows but it never materialises. Nicole Kidman’s role
as a grieving mother in ‘Rabbit Hole’ will probably not be rewarded with
a golden statuette, but it is a far more nuanced performance. The 2003
winner delivers a masterclass in the use of silence and facial
expression as an acting tool. Hers is a genuinely haunting
interpretation about the burden of human loss. However, Portman has
swept the board until now, picking up all the major awards in the
process, and the Academy will most likely follow suit.

Best Supporting Actor

Some performances
are instantly iconic and you realize that the moment you are witnessing
them. Christian Bale’s portrayal of Dicky Eklund, a junkie ex-boxer
living on past glory, is one of those sit-up-and-take-notice moments.
Not only does Bale physically transform himself for the role, he throws
in several verbal and behavioral tics which only a true thespian can
pull off. As one of the last in a dying generation of Method actors,
Bale has delivered a career best and will almost certainly reap the
dividends on the night. Honourable mention goes to ‘The Town’s’ Jeremy
Renner, who shows that his nomination last year, was no fluke; and
Geoffrey Rush for ‘The King’s Speech’. A huge surprise it was that
Andrew Garfield did not make the cut. His portrayal of Facebook
co-founder, Eduardo Saverin, was the heart of ‘The Social Network’.

Best Supporting Actress

This is probably the
most hotly contested category. Yet, there is another glaring omission
from this list — Marion Cotillard. Her role in ‘Inception’ was one of
the best of the year but she doesn’t figure in the nominations. The two
supporting actresses for ‘The Fighter’, Amy Adams and Melissa Leo, will
duel it out and both would be equally worthy of the award. However,
strong competition might come in the form of 14-year-old, Hailee
Steinfeld, the precocious co-star of ‘True-Grit’. Academy judges have
never been shy of dishing out awards to young talent when they are truly
exceptional, so Miss Steinfeld can definitely be considered a dark
horse in this category. Helena Bonham-Carter brings tremendous restraint
and regality to the role of King George’s wife in ‘The King’s Speech’
and not many would grumble if she picked up the award.

So that’s it. Good luck to all the nominees. If you are watching in
Nigeria, grab some coffee and ensure you have paid up your cable
subscription. It promises to be another memorable Oscar night.

The Katsina State
Government and the Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC) have signed a
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) following the success of a pilot
training scheme for youth of the state on film and still photography.

The NFC organised
the training last year while the document was signed on Monday,
February 14.The new one-year training programme which will be
undertaken by the Nigerian Film Institute, an affiliate of the NFC,
will hold at the state’s Craft Village Training School.

Bashir Gambo
Saulawa, Commissioner for Youth and Sports, signed the agreement on
behalf of the state government while Afolabi Adesanya, managing
director of the NFC, signed on behalf of corporation.

Speaking before the
signing ceremony, the state governor, Ibrahim Shema commended the NFC
for its efforts at repositioning Nigeria’s movie industry.

He disclosed that
government’s decision to sign the MoU with the film corporation was
because it was impressed with the outcome of the pilot scheme.

Shema who added
that his administration is desirous of building an enduring legacy that
will support youth of the state reiterated his belief in the
partnership with the NFC. He said it “will strengthen the professional
capabilities of the teeming youth of Katsina State in film making and
television production.’’ The governor also canvassed for more funding
for the film corporation in order to strengthen its operations.

Mr Adesanya, who
led management staff of the Commission to the ceremony, thanked Mr
Shema for the government’s patronage of the institution. He disclosed
that the state is the first in the country to engage the NFC to train
its youth in filmmaking.

The commission boss expressed hope that other states will follow
Katsina’s example when the benefits of the intervention starts
manifesting. Mr Adesanya who also briefed the governor on the goals and
activities of the body later presented an award for sustainable human
development/capacity building in filmmaking/photography to him.

The 2011 Africa
Movie Academy Awards will be a week-long event showcasing filmmaking on
the continent as well as the delights of its host state, Bayelsa.
Organisers have announced that the awards, due to hold between March 21
to 27 in Yenagoa, will incorporate many activities, making for a
rounded event that will have something for everyone. The broadening of
the AMAA finale is a departure from the six previous editions of the
awards, which hosts its Nominations event in Nairobi, Kenya, this
weekend. Speaking at a joint briefing with the press held in
conjunction with the Bayelsa State Commissioner for Finance and Budget,
Silva Opuala-Charles, Peace Anyiam-Osigwe, AMAA’s Chief Executive
Officer, explained the reasoning behind the repackaging of the film
awards.

Bayelsa benefits

She said the
changes are intended to ensure that Bayelsa State government and its
people can better benefit from playing host to the awards ceremonies.
“Bayelsa and its people have witnessed five consecutive years of AMAA,
attracting international and national visits, most of who are potential
investors and tourists, yet the fanfare is for just one weekend of
every year,” Anyiam-Osigwe said.

“On each occasion,
the people of the state barely find enough time to interact and enjoy
the benefits of social networking with these visitors. Our rich
socio-cultural heritage and vast investment potentials in entertainment
and tourism are often times rarely explored,” she said.

She added that
‘Experience Bayelsa 2011’ is a “conscious but deliberate strategy to
hold down the visitors for at least one week to interact with our local
economy, explore potential areas of investment, and build lasting
networks with our budding talents and upcoming acts in the
entertainment industry.” To be executed in conjunction with the Bayelsa
State Tourism Development and Publicity Bureau, the programme will
include activities that will cater for young talented youth of the
state, aspiring models, indigenous craft makers, musicians and
comedians, amongst others.

‘Kinabuti’

Specifically, the
activities include an ongoing training in film production for 50 youth
of Bayelsa and ‘Kinabuti,’ to be held two weeks before the awards
ceremony. Anyiam-Osigwe disclosed that ‘Kinabuti’ is targeted at rural
based girls with the potentials and qualities of a model, and that
‘Bayelsa 8’, a competitive raw talent hunt for youth interested in
entertainment, will run concurrently with it. The AMAA boss also said
that an art and craft exhibition is included in the package to
encourage local craftsmen, painters, sculptors, and artists.She
disclosed that the AMAA edition of ‘Experience Bayelsa 2011” will also
include a book fair featuring 42 writers from across Nigeria. All the
events, including a boat regatta and traditional wrestling at Oxbow
Lake, Yenagoa, will climax with the awards night on March 27 at the
Gloryland Cultural Centre.

The state governor,
Timipre Sylva, recently approved the establishment of the AMAA/Bayelsa
Foundation to support talented youth in the arts and entertainment.

Ms. Anyiam-Osigwe,
who also spoke about funding, said the Africa Film Academy, owners of
the AMAA franchise, and the state government have collaborated to
secure private sector participation and funding. Funding, especially
through corporate sponsorship, has been one of the major challenges of
the awards in the past, according to sources. Many feel that Corporate
Nigeria readily splash sponsorship money on non-Nigerian initiatives
like the KORA Awards, which Nigerian efforts go without. AMAA
organisers will be hoping for a turnaround, from this year onwards.

Meanwhile, movie makers from all over Africa will be heading to
Nairobi this weekend for the announcement of the film nominees who will
vie for the honours in this year’s awards.

Fiere
By Jackie Kay
63pp
Picador

Jackie Kay’s latest
collection, ‘Fiere’, in which she negotiates between her Igbo
(Nigerian) and Scottish identities, brings to mind the famous lines
from Derek Walcott’s poem, ‘A Far Cry from Africa’: “I who am poisoned
with the blood of both, / Where shall I turn, divided to the vein?” But
the parallel ends with the existence of a keenly-felt double heritage.
Kay’s dilemma (if any), unlike Walcott’s, is not in what direction to
turn. She has turned her back on the path of ambivalence; choosing
instead to embrace her twin “bloods.” The first hint of this is to be
found in the title of the collection. “Fiere,” we are told, is a
Scottish word that means “a companion, a mate, a spouse, an equal.” The
next hint is in the epigraphs that open the collection. Two lines from
the Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe, (who, like Kay’s birth father, is
Igbo) – “Wherever someone stands, / something else will stand beside
it” – sum the collection up. (The other epigraph, introducing the word
“fiere”, is by the Scottish poet Robert Burns)

That Achebe quote –
see it as an English translation, mediated by an Igbo sensibility, of a
Scottish word (“fiere”) – gives resonance to Kay’s life story; the
secrets and revelations that have showed up over a lifetime, regarding
her origins, and formed the inspiration for much of her writing. (The
title poem of ‘The Adoption Papers’, her debut poetry collection,
published in 1991, is a narration by a trio of voices: “Daughter”,
“Adoptive Mother” and “Birth Mother.”) Soon after her birth in
Edinburgh in 1961 to a Nigerian father and a Scottish mother, Kay was
adopted by a Scottish couple. In 1991, aged thirty, she met her birth
mother, and then her birth father when she was in her forties. Now
imagine Kay’s adoptive parents “stand[ing] beside” her birth parents,
and Kay beside another version of herself (“you, who were with me all
along, / walking that road not taken”), and you will realise the
significance of Achebe’s words.

Haunting these
poems is a keen awareness of the fragile nature of life, lived as it is
beneath the shadows of fate and “accident”. So when the poet,
addressing a 12th century bronze head from an ancient Nigerian
civilisation, says: “Looking back and furward in time, / ye could hae
been forgotten, / dug up, as ye were, by accident: / but naw, ye’re
here…,” she might well have been speaking to and about herself.

Travelling is a
strong motif in the collection; many of these poems are odes to roads,
rivers and restlessness (“I have travelled the roads and the miles; /
I’ve crossed the rivers and lakes”). Now and again a “farandman”
(“travelling person”) shows up: the poet driving her mother through
miles and miles of a nostalgia-suffused landscape; her mother
“[remembering] Sri Lanka”; her “bold adventurer son” going to Mexico;
her father crossing over into the second half of his eighth decade.

Love, loss and
longing swirl relentlessly in these pages, all of these underwritten by
a keen ear for language, and an eye for the raw splendour of nature.
Belonging and exclusion are also never far away. In Ukpor market in
South-Eastern Nigeria (the land of the Igbo), Kay sees “a row of women
/ with my face: mirror image. / Same square physiognomy, / same wide
nose, same broad smile…”

Tongues however
differ, as does skin colour and how it is perceived. Kay sees herself
as merely “another shade of black”, but to those women, she is “Oyinbo”
– a white person (mistranslated in this poem as “white woman”). Here,
therefore, is a poet who knows what it means to “stand alone in the
middle ground.” The collection’s blurb describes it as a “lyric
counterpoint” to ‘Red Dust Road’, Kay’s memoir, published last year, in
which she narrates her journey in search of her birth parents.

“The road to Amaudo
/ like the road to Nzagha / like roads all over Nigeria / all over
Africa / is a winding and long / red dust road / stretching / perhaps
into infinity…” she writes, in ‘Road to Amaudo.’ Fiere is indeed ‘Red
Dust Road’ set to music; the song-like vernacular of a Scottish dialect
colliding, jazz-like, with the watery rhythms of an “Igbo bath”; the
red dust of an Igbo village and the haar (sea fog) of coastal Scotland
rising to stand beside each other in tentative friendship. “C’mon,
c’mon my dearie – tak my hand, my fiere!”

Tolu Ogunlesi is studying Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, UK.

The musical theme for last week’s episode of the Nigeria Idol was ‘Abba’. Like someone once said, everyone knows an Abba song – most times, without knowing it.

Based on the overall performance, it was obvious this theme was one that the contestants were more comfortable with compared to the previous week’s ‘Songs from Movies’. They gave upbeat performances similar in energy and entertainment factor to those of the Disco week. My favourite of the night was Alex, who like Jeffrey Daniels noted, has transformed over the course of the show. He first started out seemingly as shy and reserved but has since come out of his shell, becoming one of the most entertaining acts of the show. His rendition of ‘Mamma Mia’ was interspersed with dance moves that were well timed and delivered without too much or unnecessary exertion on him physically and vocally. His routine earned him a salute from guest judge, Jesses Jagz who also referred to him as having a heart of steel.

Compared to Alex’s, dancer Zoe’s choreography can often only be termed as over the top. It also tends to take a lot from her singing. Personally, I see it as a distraction that does nothing to enhance whatever vocal prowess she has. However this last week, she toned down the dancing enough to give a sweet eighties disco-eque rendition of Dancing Queen which totally bowled over Jags who called her an all-round performer.

Still it was Naomi that was the star of the show as usual. She was once again given a standing ovation by the studio audience. This made Yinka Davies thank the audience for making the show what it is. She could as well have been thanking them for loving Naomi so much which would not have been necessary seeing as the petite singer deserved every single sound form the ovation. Jessie Jagz who was mighty impressed, compared her singing to the way Jay Jay Okacha plays football-, calling it effortless.

As Naomi continued to deliver, George once, one of the bright stars of the show like her on the other hand, continued to display a complete loss of form. His performance in the ‘Abba’ week was even more of a disappointment than in the ‘Songs from Movie’ week. Even worse was the Disco week. So it of course came as no surprise when he finally got evicted off the show on Thursday.

What was however surprising (at least to me) was who got to accompany him off the Idol stage. In spite of her soulful song interpretations, Tonii had somehow failed to connect with the audience in a Zoe or Naomi-like way. Sure she has the talent but seems she did not have the proverbial wow-factor.

Sadly, this could turn out to be Emmanuel’s fate. He is another of the contestant like Tonii who unfortunately often only manages to connect with the judges. His rendition of ‘Honey Honey’ although commended by the judges with Yinka Davies declaring her love for him and Jesse Jagz calling it his best performance of the night, was met with a lukewarm applause from the studio-audience. Jesse Jagz seemed to think that this did not matter as in his own professional opinion, Emmanuel performed the song well by spicing it up with appropriate dance moves that went with it (twist?).

In my own personal/humble opinion having the right dance moves to a song is not good enough if you fail to entertain your “general” audience. Entertaining a general audience is what stars like the kind Nigerian Idol intends to churn out does.

And this why realistically speaking, smoke and mirrors performers like Zoe on the Nigerian Idol and pop icons D’banj, Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga (with or despite any real talent they might have) tend to make it over more conventional entertainers.

Nothing prepares
you for what you eventually find when you engage singer, rapper, and
songwriter, Nneka. Neither the unruly afro nor the petite frame
prepares you for the profound personality buried underneath. However,
one look in her eyes tells you there is more to the singer, and then a
tour through her music will add the final stamp of conviction.

Born Nneka Egbuna
in 1981 to a Nigerian father and a German mother, in Warri, Delta
State, she has grown to be very vocal about her concern for the plight
of the Niger Delta.

The 2009 MOBO Award
winner first hit stardom as an artist in Europe before the Nigerian
music scene began to acknowledge her. However, with or without the
recognition of her homeland, the artist has taken her star quality even
further to the United States where she toured for the most part of 2010
with the likes of Nas, who did a rap in a version of her ‘Heartbeat’
song, and Damian Marley.

“Before the album
‘Concrete Jungle’ was released, I did a mix tape which featured artists
like Lauryn Hill, The Roots, and Nas, among others,” Nneka revealed,
seated in a cozy bar at Bogobiri House.

The ‘Concrete
Jungle’ tour was quite an experience for the artist as she had the
opportunity of performing with artists such as Erykah Badu, Jill Scott,
and Beyonce, among others. However, being on the road all year long was
no mean feat.

“I thank God for my
band. Most of them are older and married. They are disciplined too. We
go to bed early and we eat well because some of them are vegetarians,”
Nneka said of her band members.

In 2010, during her
US tour, Nneka also performed on David Letterman’s ‘The Late Show’,
going some way to create a fan base for herself in the US. She was also
nominated for Best Female Artist at last year’s MTV MAMA awards which
held in Lagos, and award eventually clinched by rapper, Sasha. But
Nneka remains undaunted.

Life elsewhere

She once stated in
an interview that, “I gained an awareness of Africa in Germany. I think
if I hadn’t stepped out of Africa, if I hadn’t lived in Germany, I
wouldn’t have had that mindset today.”

Asked what she
meant, the artist explained that, “Before I moved out of Nigeria, I was
aware alright. I grew up in the Niger Delta. When I went out of
Nigeria, I had the opportunity to know myself. I wouldn’t say my
parents were poor but we had to hustle. My mind was occupied with
getting by.”

“Stepping out gave
me the opportunity to get to know myself and music. I developed the
urge to express myself so that I’ll not be misunderstood because up
till then, I was always misunderstood,” she added.

Furthermore, “it
helped to develop my identity and personality, got me interested in
music, and made me understand that my music had to have a message.”

Leaving Nigeria for
Germany in 2000 became imperative for the artist and marked the
beginning of another phase in her life. “I started studying while also
working part time jobs,” she disclosed. In Germany, she met Nigerians
like herself also working hard to make a living.

According to her,
some of them just wanted to forget about Nigeria. Listening to their
plight and some of her own experiences helped to create various themes
for her creative repertoire. One of those experiences was racism.

Back in Nigeria,
Nneka never saw herself as anything but black. “I never felt different
till I stepped out and experienced racism,” she said.

The height of it
was at Hamburg University where she was studying Archeology and
Anthropology. At the time, she was the only Nigerian in her department.

One of her
professors refused to give her marks for her dissertation. He made
clear his disdain for her colour and her attempt to gain a degree in
that particular field. “You people are good at sports and music. That’s
enough,” she quoted him. She eventually graduated but, “I always had to
prove myself.”

Her music

On what music means to her, the artist says music is a reflection of everything happening within her.

“I don’t look for
topics like: ‘Oh, I have to sing about corruption today’. It comes
naturally. It’s almost like a confession; almost like therapy for me.”

On when she first realised she had ‘it’, Nneka laughs and states modestly that “I still don’t have it.”

“I always knew that
I could sing, but I never knew that I wanted to sing. I never thought
I’ll be doing what I am doing now. All I wanted was to get out and be
free, and learn. I wanted a degree,” she confessed.

Going back to her
childhood, Nneka noted that, “as a child, I always played house. And I
realise that I was always the mother; the figure of authority. I had a
shrine and I had my imaginary friends, but I was in charge. Even today,
I like to be in control. I like to know I can survive by myself and
that reflects in my music,” she disclosed. “But I am not always that
strong,” she reflected.

On her website, her
music is described as having a ‘big splash of Bob Marley, a measure of
Nina Simone, and a lick of Erykah Badu’. Nneka also acknowledges
influence from Fela, Victor Uwaifo, Sunny Okosuns, Sunny Ade, and Shina
Peters.

Film debut

Her recent foray
into the world of make believe is certainly something to talk about.
Sometime ago, she wrapped up shooting for Andy Amadi Okoroafor’s new
movie ‘Relentless’. The movie, which was screened at the Africa
International Film Festival (AFRIFF), held in Port Harcourt last
December, features her alongside ‘Tinsel’ actor, Gideon Okeke.

Nneka plays Honey,
a prostitute with ties to ruthless politicians. According to her, “The
movie shows Lagos from a raw side but with class,” she says. The singer
also performs with musician, Ade Bantu, on a song from the movie’s
soundtrack, ‘Waiting’.

Next steps

Nneka is recording her next album for Europe and the United States and hopes to release it in Nigeria later.

“You have to be creative to run the Nigerian market and keep yourself in the minds of your audience,” she declares.

On why she does not
have a Nigerian record label, she goes on to recount her experience
when she first wanted to break into the local industry. According to
her, it was always one story or the other with some of the labels.
“Some of them wanted to redefine my image,” she says.

Nneka is not all
about music, as she is involved in Rope Foundation, a non-governmental
organisation she co-founded with Sierra Leonean-Liberian artist, Hameed
Nyei, who used to work with ex-child soldiers.

She is also the
NGO’s project manager for Nigeria. “We do workshops with kids that are
less privileged. We use music as a platform for them to express
themselves,” she says.

With the steady progress she is making, already a popular name in
Europe and Africa, and making inroads into the American music scene
with her unique and refreshing brand of music, it is clear that Nneka
is not resting on her oars.

The Hanger Lane: Hosts Fashion/Lifestyle bazaar and concert – The Eagle Club, 100 Adeniran Ogunsanya street, Surulere, Lagos. 1pm till 8pm. Today

Aramotu: Launching and premiere of the movie – Coral Reef, 10A, Ikoya Avenue off Macpherson Avenue, off Bourdillon Road, Ikoyi, Lagos. 3pm. Today

Onions Make Us Cry: Crown Troupe of Africa presents Zainabu Jallo’s play- Terra Kulture, Plot 1376, Tiamiyu Savage Street, Victoria Island, Lagos. 3pm and 5pm. Today

Art Workshop: tagged ‘Corruption: its breath; its death’- Alliance Francaise, Iyaganku, Ibadan. 9am till 4pm. March 5.

Abuja Writers Forum: hosts Poet and Writer Toyin Adewale-Gabriel at Guest writer session- Pen and Pages Bookstore, White House Plaza, Plot 79, Adetokunbo Ademola crescent, Wuse 2, Abuja. 4pm. February 26.

Harmattan Workshop- 13th edition of Bruce Onobrakpeya Foundation’s annual Workshop- Agbarha Otor, Delta State. February 27 till March 12.

Please send details of art events 10days in advance by SMS (07034086014) or email: culture@234next.com

Surrounded by
books, journals, and awards, Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo is the
quintessential writer of creative and academic works. She has to her
credit 31 works in many genres, including children books, plays, short
stories, poetry volumes for children and adults, as well as
well-researched novels.

Professor of
English at the University of Lagos, Adimora-Ezeigbo sat down with NEXT
to discuss her forthcoming book, a novel of over 500 pages, titled,
‘Roses and Bullets’, to be published through the Jalaa Writers’
Collective.

Creativity in the blood

When I was in
secondary school, I started drawing pictures and putting words to them.
After I did that, I would show my family members. I attended a
secondary school where Literature was compulsory; it was in the school
that I was introduced to the subject and I loved it.

I was also editor
of the school magazine; and I was in the Dramatic Society where I wrote
my first play. The war started just before I finished, so I had to stop
school for a while. I finished secondary school and went on to the
University of Lagos.

I was the editor of
the university magazine and published short stories and poems in that
journal. I was not writing persistently after I became a lecturer. I am
not a full time writer; you cannot be a full time writer because there
is too much work. Creative writing is just an aspect of the writing I
do.

Haunted by war

I was a witness to
the war. I witnessed it as a secondary school student. I saw its
brutalities and discriminations. Everything that was negative, I
experienced it. It left in me a deep impression about the evils of war.
I knew the war will keep haunting me because I lost relatives, cousins,
in-laws, and friends who were then young boys of between 15 and 16.

Even my husband who
was a student at the University of Nigeria (Nsukka) then was in the
war; he rose to the rank of captain. My mind was full of the terrors of
the war. I witnessed rockets dropping from the sky. The war was on my
mind, so I decided to use it as the basis for my PhD; my thesis was
later published as a book.

Even after working
on the civil war in my thesis, it still haunted me, so I wrote short
stories and children’s books with the war as part of the storyline,
like in ‘Children of the Eagle’. I wanted to do something bigger, so I
wrote ‘Roses and Bullets’.

I started writing
it in 2003. I got all the materials I needed from writing my thesis; it
was not difficult writing the novel but I did not have time. It was
when I got a one-year fellowship at the Royal Holloway University
(London) in 2006 that I had time to write. I completed the book in
2007. I have been reworking it and giving other people to read, and now
it is ready for publishing.

Roses and Bullets

It is basically
about two important characters, a young man and a young woman in a
period of war. The war affected their love; it actually destroyed it.
It is about their lives and their families. The girl is the most
important character.

The story widens to
bring in the war experience and other characters who are affected by
it. ‘Roses and Bullets’ is a love story set before and after the war. I
have read everything on the Nigerian civil war. Apart from witnessing
it, I have been able to transmute ideas and facts into fiction.

Writers and publishing

One of the problems
writers face is the problem of distribution. Though I have published
with popular publishing houses, I can’t say [my works have] been well
distributed, even though publishers have distributors and agents. Many
of the smaller publishers have the same problem, I believe. That is why
they organise readings to that affect. I don’t know how well my books
are distributed, so I don’t know how well they are doing in the market.

Children and books

If you ask me, I
think Literature should not be dropped. Students should be made to do
Literature up to school certificate level. Reading improves your
control of language; books enlighten and inspire. Children need to
develop the love for books.

In spite of other
interests, books are still relevant, so children should be encouraged
to read, as it disciplines them. If a child can read for two to three
hours, the child will be disciplined. Every school should have a
functional library. When I was in secondary school I read everything in
the library.

Awareness is crucial. Children should be made aware of the importance of books; it forms the foundation for them.

Influences

I won’t say that I
was influenced by any individual. Rather, I would call it a voracious
influence. I have read so many books from around the world; how can I
say that anyone in particular has influenced me?

I wrote my first
book (‘Tainted Manuscript’) when I was 16. It still exists as a
manuscript, though it is tattered and torn. I hope to publish it
someday.

Jalaa Collective

It was Odili
Ujubuonu who introduced me to Jalaa while he was doing his Masters [at
the University of Lagos]. When he came to me the first time, I told him
that I had a publisher and I did not have problems with them. Odili
came again and shared with me the vision of the collective, but what
struck me were the young writers who were involved. They are people
that I admire, so I decided to join, even if it just to encourage them.

We agreed to
publish twice a year, April and December, because the idea is to bring
seriousness and excellence into writing, by being a model for other
collectives to emulate.

Turning back the clock

If I could change
anything in my writing career, I would have really liked to have
started writing much earlier. I could not start writing until I had
finished raising my children. This affects a lot of women writers. Some
of us who married in our 20s found ourselves taking care of our
children and going to work.

It was particularly
impossible to write at that time. I have written a novel now, I don’t
know when I would write another one – where is the time? The first
serious thing I published was in 1992 when I was already a senior
lecturer. I wish I had started writing when I was 18 or 19, but I have
no regrets that those years of my life were taken up by raising my
children and work. My children give me joy.

Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo’s ‘Roses and Bullets’ will be published by the Jalaa Collective.

The arts community gathered round to celebrate the 70th birthday of the ageless actress, Taiwo Ajai-Lycett, at an event held at Tribeca, Lagos, on Sunday, February 13. Jointly organised by the Committee for Relevant Art (CORA) and the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA), the event was tagged, ‘State of the Stage: Conversation With and Around Taiwo Ajai-Lycett.’

In his welcome address, Jahman Anikulapo, programme chair of CORA, acknowledged the presence of the veteran actress, who needed no introduction as she exuded a regal aura where she sat. He spoke of how much she had contributed to the lives of many, adding that the dramatist Wole Oguntokun was the chosen moderator of the Forum because of his immense contribution to stage acting. Ajai-Lycett was going to be in conversation with fellow actresses, Tina Mba and Kate Henshaw-Nuttal; and the fact that Oguntokun had worked with all three was a plus, according to Anikulapo.

The guests

Taking over as moderator, Oguntokun introduced guests, including, Francesca Emanuel and Bayo Oduneye, both pioneering performers who had been involved in acting from as early as the fifties and sixties. Other notables in the gathering included: Joke Silva, Dejumo Lewis, Greg Odutayo (President of the National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners, NANTAP), Tunde Kelani, Pamela Udoka and Teju Kareem.

Oguntokun also introduced and ushered in Henshaw-Nuttall and Tina Mba to their seats beside the celebrant, for a conversation between two generations of Nigerian female thespians.

Book reading

The event also featured a book reading session by Toyin Akinosho of CORA. His chosen text were Kaine Agary’s novel, ‘Yellow Yellow’; and a short story by Melissa Myambo, ‘Deciduous Gazettes’, from ‘Opening Spaces’, an anthology compiled by the Yvonne Vera.

Akinosho said the reading was a fitting tribute to Ajai-Lycett because he knew how much she loved books. He recalled her words from an interview, “When you send me books, I know you love me.” He then presented the celebrant. Oguntokun noted that the event was a good opportunity to bring pioneering actors together. He gave some background about the celebrant’s formative years as well as those of other accomplished actors present, including Bayo Oduneye and Dejumo Lewis. Not keen on boring the audience with a long speech, Oguntokun got them rolling with laughter. This he did when he got into a reminiscent mood and asked the audience to sing the theme tune of ‘Village Headmaster’, in which Lewis played Kabiyesi.

The celebrant speaks

Responding to the accolades, Ajai-Lycett said she felt honoured to be there and thanked her fellow pioneering actors seated. “A poet is a visionary” that should be listened to and respected, she said, while acknowledging the poet and polemicist, Odia Ofeimun. Ajai-Lycett disclosed that her acting career had started by chance, when she stumbled across Yemi Ajibade on a production. The meeting paved the way for her to act.

Love of the stage

Kate Henshaw-Nuttal also talked about how she joined the Nollywood A-List, thanks to an almost accidental first audition. Although she has made more appearances on screen than the stage, she revealed that she is beginning to love the latter more.

“I love the stage much more than the screen these days. I don’t know why,” she said, laughing. “It’s a virus!” Tina Mba interjected, eliciting a loud roar of laughter from the audience. “It’s fantastic and exhilarating!” Henshaw-Nuttal added. Mba, who admitted to not being a woman “of many words,” said she felt honoured to be sitting down with Ajai-Lycett, who she described as humble and dedicated to her work.

Questions and answers

During the interactive session between the celebrant and the audience, the veteran actress provided answers to the many questions asked. On why she didn’t accept a Nollywood film role offered to her, Ajai-Lycett declared that Nollywood lacks everything she attributed to art. The discipline and respect needed are lacking, she observed, explaining that the the producer concerned had sent her a text and thrown her a script. “Courtesy is of the essence,” she said, adding that many filmmakers in Nigeria lack these qualities.

Nollywood’s highs and lows

There was a vibrant and sometimes heated discussion about the Nigerian film industry, with many in the audience offered their views on the subject.

“We should change our perception of art. Art is supposed to be enriching,” Ajai-Lycett advised. She further urged filmmakers to read books as a means of enhancing their art. Using Wole Soyinka as an example, she said anyone who was not ‘educated’ couldn’t read his book. His books, she said, translate the ideology and philosophy of his country. She asked how many of the filmmakers in the audience had read Ofeimun’s poems. The silence spoke volumes.

It was agreed after a long debate that Nollywood still has a lot to learn. Ajai-Lycett urged filmmakers to learn to be humble, committed to their work, to respect, appreciate and listen to one another. She further noted that even established filmmakers need training; and canvassed for the documentation of the past exploits of pioneering actors a way of encouraging thespians in general. The portrayal of the society at large in movies is also of great importance, she insisted.

A befitting event

There was much laughter during the course of the evening. Singer and Nigerian Idol judge, Yinka Davies, had everyone reeling with laughter when she spoke. The audience also had a good laugh over Nollywood movie titles. The moderator said it is easy to tell a Nollywood movie apart by its titles and soundtracks, because they are often funny and weird. He said this suggests that Nigerians have very limited ideas about appropriate film titles.

The highlight of the evening was rendering a moving song to Taiwo Ajai-Lycett and female power. Tina Mba got all the women in the audience to sing for five women worth celebrating in the Nigerian movie industry. The five women – Taiwo Ajai-Lycett, Francesca Emanuel, Toun Oni, Iya Awero and Iya Rainbow – were celebrated, as females in the audience rose to sing ‘Iyaniwura’ (Mother is Golden). It was sung with such lustre that Taiwo Ajai-Lycett got on the dance floor. The men were also not left out, as Dejumo Lewis led all in the audience to sing to the veterans and fallen soldiers of the movie industry.

Things to do

At the end of the event, Jahman Anikulapo reiterated all that had been said and agreed upon. He urged the Greg Odutayo as NANTAP president to design programmes to train and mentor upcoming and established actors. He also urged writers and journalists to write about Taiwo Ajai-Lycett. He argued Nollywood shouldn’t be knocked down entirely; rather, “it should be changed, if it is our face to the world.” He further suggested that NANTAP should work hand in hand with the Association of Nigerian Authors, so that more movies would be adapted from literature, like Kelani’s movies.

As for Taiwo Ajai-Lycett, she was humility personified. “The only thing I don’t know is what I don’t know,” was among the memorable things she said on the day.

A married female Facebook friend asked me the other day, “What do you men really want besides sex?” I told her the truth: Besides sex, men really want a lot of sex, a lot! My friend thinks allowing her husband sex is the most disgusting thing ever. The poor man sits on their couch for days on end with his big belle, farting, belching, scratching his butt and demanding peppersoup and Heineken so he can enjoy the Nigerian football teams, Manchester United and Arsenal, wallop each other. At half time, he wants sex. He likes having sex while wearing his favourite Arsenal T-shirt. The shirt was last washed (by my friend) three years ago. If he would only take it off, she would wash it again. They live in Nigeria. Oh man, that is the life: Sex, Heineken, peppersoup and football on demand. And no showers! The men of Nigeria have it made. Try that nonsense here in America and the divorce court woman judge will ask for your sorry behind as in: “Olosi, iso abi tire? Idiot, would you like a nail driven through your olodo head or a necklace of fire and petrol around your lazy ass neck?”

Women are always asking important questions on Facebook. If you are on Facebook, please sign on to Let’s Talk About It, a page run by an eclectic Nigerian lady named PJ. This page is extremely popular; all our Nigerian women are over there talking about all sorts of sexy stuff that they would like done to them by the clueless men in their lives. They talk about men and sex nonstop. I did not know that there were other sex positions other than the missionary position until I got to this page, Lord have mercy. Nigerian women, to hear them say it, are utterly disappointed in their men’s sex habits. They want a lot of ceremonies ahead of the real thing. Do you know Nigerian women would like something called “foreplay”? They would really appreciate romantic words like “I love you” before doing the real thing. I did not find a single Nigerian woman on that page who was interested in just going straight to business. According to our wives, partners and lovers, we should be showering them with strange things like flowers, candy, perfume, lingerie, romantic cards and bad poetry, all for the privilege of having sex. This is one of the sins of globalisation. Facebook is spoiling our spouses and partners for us.

Okay, just to summarize this important column: Many Nigerian men think Facebook is a FESTAC peppersoup joint. On the other hand, it seems that all our women are on Facebook enjoying imaginary sex and talking about the clueless men in their lives. Their favourite topic seems to be sex or the lack of it. Let me emphasise that they are unsatisfied with the sexual services provided by their men. So they go on Facebook to talk about men. They are totally unreasonable. They want something called love making, they want men to be tender, understanding, and they want men to talk to them. Nigerian men, whatever you do, please do not describe the heavenly act of lovemaking as “nacking” or “chopping.” You will be relegated to the virtual doghouse. Our women now insist on foreplay, which apparently involves a lot of talking and whispering obvious njakiri like: “I love you, my lovely, wonderful princess, blah, blah, blah.” Of course we love our wives, otherwise we would have married our mortal enemies. These modern women critique men’s moves in bed and the feedback one gets is that they are very unhappy with our bedside manners or the lack of said manners. There is an Egyptian revolution in the making in the hearts of our Nigerian women. It is the fault of Facebook. Again, if you are a Nigerian man and your lover is on Facebook (trust me she is), please do not ever say to her when you are in a romantic mood, “abeg I wan nack!” She will wallop you on the head with a sex toy. If you don’t know what a sex toy is, your marriage is in divorce court. The questions women ask on the page are very illuminating. Here is a sample posting: “My husband refuses to lick my toes! The idiot wants peppersoup instead! He says, ‘Abeg stop wasting my time jare, I wan nack!’ Idiot! Bush man!”

According to Let’s Talk About It, the average Nigerian woman seems to require five rounds of sex daily, each round lasting an hour, with the man whispering sweet nonsense to her and showering her with roses and feeding her Godiva chocolate, wine and ofensala while vacuuming the house, and doing the dishes. Some of these loving activities better take place in a late model 2-door Mercedes Benz with the roof turned down. What do I think of all of this? I shall be right back; I am going to buy my wife flowers. Happy Valentine’s Day in arrears, honey! Who wan die?