Producer, The Noble Warrior Stageplay Revs up for July Production

Yinka Olatunbosun

The Nigerian-American playwright and producer, Cash Onadele, also known as Aiye-Ko-Ooto, has teased another stage production slated for July titled The Noble Warrior (Eni Ogun) in honour of Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka, who turns 91 on July 13. The production which is scheduled to run from July 11 to 13 at Glover Memorial Hall, Lagos promises two shows daily — a 3 pm matinee and a 6 pm champagne show.

A suspense-filled Black musical theatre, the play is in itself an offering of total spectacle including music, dance and drama to celebrate Soyinka’s legacy. The production team has hinted that this year’s edition will feature an innovative set design and immersive audience experience.

Reflecting on last year’s edition which marked Soyinka’s 90th birthday, the Producer, Cash Onadele promised heightened audience engagement with souvenir books and branded merchandise in the offing.

“We have 45 members of cast and crew will be five,’’ Onadele revealed during a press briefing in Lagos. “60 percent of those who were in the play would be there. Segun Adefila, the artist director will be retained and he is willing to experiment with both old and new actors. We want the experience to be intense and the songs vibrate with the audience.”

The team also plans to stage campus versions at University of Lagos and University of Ibadan, and others with subsidised tickets. The long-term goal is to make the production annual, with other works like Moriti Ometa and Ajogi (The Foreigner), for a broader literary fiesta.

“UNILAG has great seating capacity and we are going to have serious discounts for students with ID Card. We are interested in youth development, integration and we think that’s a way of giving back and we think it would be a great thing to do that. I see this production as an opportunity to continue the legacy of Prof. Wole Soyinka and we want to continue to integrate what we have learnt from him and his experiences and we want to expand it.”

“This is more than a tribute,” he added. “It is a celebration of legacy and a push toward the future of Nigerian theatre.”

The producer is eyeing other body of works from Soyinka such as Orita Meta and Ajoji for future projects.

“As at 2018, Soyinka had recorded 68 literary works. Some are still unpublished and some are in the universities where he taught. There were so many things he did and we didn’t just want to repeat stories of the past,’’ he explained as he fielded questions from journalists.

Onadele’s oeuvre spans several creative genres. He wrote and produced The Noble Warrior staged in theatres in Abeokuta and Lagos. 2019 4-part ethnographic fiction drama titled ‘Blood of Freedom’. Additional works followed, 55+ children youth and adult stories, screenplays, novels, novellas, children / youth short stories, and collections of novellas.. Before fiction were poems. 52 anthologies of poetry, he famously cataloged as ‘Odo-Alamo Series’. He is a prolific writer and undoubtedly a culture-aware philosopher, poet, and playwright. The 62-year old lives in Lagos and Texas.