Nigeria Content Online

Nobel Laureate,
Wole Soyinka, charged him with blowing his father’s trumpet at the
recent book launch for Tunde Fagbenle, veteran columnist for Sunday
Punch. But trumpets, or more specifically, saxophones, are not all that
O.T Fagbenle, Anglo-Nigerian son of Tunde Fagbenle, has his hands on.

Olatunde Fagbenle,
who describes himself as an actor, a saxophonist, and a singer in that
order, was born in the United Kingdom 30 years ago. OT, as he is
popularly known, returned to Nigeria at the age of two and lived in
Yaba, Lagos, until he relocated to Spain when he was nine. Following
this, OT’s grandmother bought him a saxophone and enrolled him for
music lessons. He joined the South Coast Jazz band at age 10.

Theatre
practitioner and a good friend of Fagbenle senior, Rufus Orisayomi (who
died earlier this year), initiated OT into the African theatre when the
youngster was 14 years old.

He was one of the
34 successful candidates admitted into the prestigious Royal Academy of
Dramatic Arts (RADA) in the UK in his year. He was there for three
years, learning all aspects of drama and theatre, from Shakespeare to
sword fighting, dance, diction, accents, voice projection, stage
movements, and television techniques.

After viewing OT’s
performance in a school production, an agent approached him, and got
him his first Broadway performance: a role in Lauren Hansberry’s ‘Le
Blancs’.

Theatre

OT has not looked
back. According to the actor, “I played a myriad of roles. I played a
Trinidadian, a Nigerian, street boy roles, posh boy roles, and even
Shakespeare characters; I cut my tooth on these different roles.”

Manchester’s Royal
Exchange Theatre offered OT the lead role in ‘Six Degrees of
Separation’, the John Guare play made popular by its adapted movie
version starring Will Smith. OT played Paul, a fast talking young black
con-man, earning the Manchester Evening News (MEN) award for Best Lead
Role Actor in Manchester.

Television

But then, OT
decided to take a break from theatre. “I felt that I had come full
circle and had established myself as a theatre actor,” he explains.

OT’s efforts in
getting into TV began with appearances in a few episodes of the
long-running UK soap opera, ‘Eastenders’. Other television credits
include roles in other UK productions: Casualty (2004), Holly Oaks
(2004), Doctors (2004), Marple (2006), Grown Ups (2006), Little Miss
Jocelyn (2006-2008), Quarter Life(2008), Doctor Who (2008), and
Material Girl (2010).

Movies

In 2004, he acted
in the movie, ‘Breaking and Entering’, in which he featured alongside
Jude Law and Juliette Binoche. It was directed by the late Academy
Award winning director, Anthony Minghella, whom Fagbenle fondly
describes as “a beautiful, talented individual.” In his slightly self
deprecating manner, he confides that during the production of the
movie, “I got to hang out with stars.”

Though describing
his movie experiences as a lot more glamorous than theatre, Fagbenle
admits that theatre is “almost natural to me, so I find it easier.” He
explained further that theatre actors can manipulate their performance
and voices to suit the size of the audience, theatre acoustics,
ambience, and other theatrical considerations. “I’ve been doing TV for
a while, and I’m only just beginning to feel that I’m getting a hang of
it.”

Fagbenle sees no
big difference between the small screen and the silver screen. To him,
“the big difference is between stage and TV.” His movie performances
include: ‘I could never be your woman’, in which he starred alongside
Michelle Pfeiffer (2006); ‘Walter’s War’, a biopic of the first black
officer in the British army; ‘Consuming Passions’, a BBC production;
and ‘Double Wedding’. The accomplished actor’s latest efforts are as
character, Dave Holland, in movies ‘Thorne: Scaredy Cat’ and ‘Thorne:
Sleepy Head’, scheduled for release in October 2010.

Fagbenle has also
been involved in several radio productions, such as in a BBC’s radio
adaptation of ‘The Color Purple’, which won the Sony Radio Academy
Awards for Drama in 2009; and ‘Westway’, a radio soap opera. He has
earned himself an impressive reputation outside Nigeria, as his work
has taken him to locations in Scotland, Jamaica, America, Canada,
Barbados, Hong Kong, China, and Germany.

Asked what plans he
has to extend his career to his country of origin, he replies that “I
love being in Nigeria. I’m looking for the right opportunity and have
been speaking to some producers. “

Mainframe
Production’s Tunde Kelani is one of those OT would like to work with.
Interestingly, for someone who has earned his career success on TV,
Fagbenle does very little television viewing. “I have a TV in my house,
but I never turn it on. I know I should expand my television watching,
but I need something to stand out and be unmissable before I can view
it,” he says simply. His interests instead are books, meeting people,
and spending time with his family.

Humility

The actor plays
Blues, Funk and Highlife; and he has had an opportunity to mesh his
dual passions for music and acting in ‘Quarterlife’, a TV drama
produced in the United States. He plays a a singer in the production;
and co-wrote the music with Stefno Moses.

A very humble
person, Fagbenle declares, “The truth is, I’m not really that good. I
recognise mediocrity; and I achieve it often in music, and hate myself
for it. I am a fair critic of myself, so I know I do not do music as
well as I act.”

On his dual
cultural influences, the actor says he feels more Nigerian in the UK.
“I am considered white here (Nigeria) and black there (UK).” He
declares, however, that “Race is an idea I reject. There is no
biological basis for it.” When asked by this reporter to demonstrate
his knowledge of the Yoruba culture and language, he replies “My Yoruba
is coming ‘die, die’. People always laugh when I try to speak the
language; half happy that I am trying, and half amused at my accent.”

His opinion on the
Nigerian entertainment scene is that the industry is experiencing an
exciting transition. He says, “The skills in editing, sound design, and
production quality are improving. I look forward to the time when
Nigerian movie productions will be shown in major movie cinemas
worldwide.”

Fagbenle also has a
view on what he terms ‘the Lagos life’. According to him, “Lagos is one
of the most exciting cities in the world. I hear people say life in New
York is tough, but I disagree. I think if you can make it here in
Lagos, you are fine anywhere else. Lagos is a no-nonsense place; and
like my father titled his latest book, there are a lot of cries, but
also a lot of joys experienced by its people.”

The actor explains
further that economic differences, rather than cultural differences,
are Nigeria’s biggest problems, making mention of the inequitable
distribution of wealth, as well as class differences.

Acclaim

A lover of Nigerian
music, his favourite Nigerian artiste is Fela Kuti, while he also
expresses his appreciation for the more contemporary single, ‘Fi mi
le’, by musician, Kas. Nigerian movies, however, have not impressed the
international actor much as he admits that “I haven’t watched any movie
that stood out; I am still waiting for that knock out.” His best
African literature of all time is ‘Things Fall Apart’ by Chinua Achebe.

Fagbenle’s most
challenging role, he says was in Trevor Nunn’s , ‘Porgy and Bess: The
Musical’, which he describes as “an amazing, heart breaking story”
performed in London West end with a 26 piece orchestra.

Based in the United
Kingdom, Fagbenle also lives in the United States for about five months
a year; and hopes to start spending more time in Nigeria. On his
aspirations for the future, he declares that “Ultimately, I prefer
acting, and am happy as an actor.”

And as reward for
pursuing his singular passion for acting, OT Fagbenle has received a
number of honours and awards, including his inclusion in the 100 faces
of RADA, alongside the likes of Sir Anthony Hopkins, Clive Owen, and
Sir John Gielgud.

In October 2006,
Fagbenle got critical acclaim for his performance in the Tony
Award-winning ‘Porgy and Bess: The Musical’; and in 2008, he was the
recipient of an Outstanding Achievement Award at the 13th African Film
Awards.

Ten years from now, the still single actor hopes to have “found
love”; to be able to support his family and siblings, and to contribute
his part to improving the world. Career wise, he hopes to “be involved
in projects that affect lives, and to star in meaningful productions
while, of course, making excessive amounts of money.”