MTN Foundation Gives Colour to NUTAF

MTN Foundation Gives Colour to NUTAF

Vanessa Obioha

The Nigerian Universities Theatre Arts Festival (NUTAF) opened at the National Arts Theatre, Lagos on Monday, October 21 in a colourful style.

The opening ceremony was characterised by a vibrant display of costumes and traditional attire, as well as a mixture of colorful song and dance performances that reflect the rich diversity of Nigeria’s many ethnic groups.

Sponsored by the MTN Foundation as part of its Arts and Culture Causes, the festival themed ‘Governance and Globalization’ prides itself as one of the pioneer forums where young and bright talents from theatre arts faculties around the country, will perform and be seen by some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry.

Speaking on the foundation’s support for the festival, Director, MTN Foundation, Dennis Okoro said, “Our rich and vibrant culture, bequeathed to us by our parents will only thrive on the strength of the support that we provide to our next generation. The MTN Foundation is passionate about empowering young people to develop.”

Each day of the six-day festival organised by the Nigerian Universities Theatre Art Students Association (NUTASA) witness performances from three universities. Each performance consists of a wide range of activities including drama performances, creative dance, standup comedy as well as workshops on creativity, costuming and stage design.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the festival now in its 38th edition, National President, NUTASA, Egbemwonghaye Osazee proudly restates that the NUTASA was established to “unlock the untapped talents in Nigerian Universities and through them project the excellence of African culture to the world from the Center of Excellence.”

Founded in 1981, and with only three schools – the University of Ibadan, the University of Benin and the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife – in attendance, NUTAF has grown to become a staple on Nigeria’s University events calendar.
The 2018 edition of the festival, which took place in Jos, welcomed 25 participating schools. Some of Nigeria’s most popular actors including Richard Mofe-Damijo, Hilda Dokubo, Segun Arinze and Julius Agu are veterans of past editions of the festival.

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