September 26, 2021| Day Two
The second day of the Abuja Literary and Arts Festival [ALitFest21] hosted by the Abuja Literary Society, [ALS] saw the presentation of a 2-hour stage play tagged, ‘Always together’.
The play, which was produced and directed by Dike Chukwumerije, the Founder of Simply Poetry mirrored the social happenings in Nigeria.
It covers the issues of systematic corruption, insecurity, sexual harassments, and many other societal ills.
Chukwumerije who spoke after the curtain-call said the cast who delivered an outstanding performance had only two weeks to rehearse.
The story followed the life of a young girl who was redeployed to an insecurity prone state because she would not grant sexual favours to her supervisor. She was then kidnapped, and the kidnapper was someone who was forced into the act due to the systemic failures of institutions. He needed money to pay for the release of his daughters who were held ransom. He had earlier gone through relevant institutions to seek redress, but he was told the person involved is a “friend of Abuja”.
An audience who identified as Bashir said the play made him sad because it reflected the lack of social contract in Nigeria.
He said the people in government are not there to serve the people but their own interests.
Speaking on the performance of the cast, Jane Zibiri-Esakomp, who watched the play said “I found the play very interesting; I like how dramatic all the characters were, they communicated quite well.”
She added that she loved how the play captured government officials’ negligence in the discharge of their duty with little or no consequences.
Another audience member, Bashirat Abudulwahab, noted that “The play is a metaphor of what is going on in Nigeria. It is like a mirror of what we are going through in Nigeria. It so vivid, so clear, and so obvious that we are not safe.”
The fourth edition of the festival started on September 25 and is expected to culminate on October 2.
The theme for ALitFest21 is “Making Art Work”.
Bamas Victoria,
Press Manager, ALITFEST
