‘Omo Odo’ is everyone of us – Segun Adefila says about the play on which he is collaborating with Kunle Afolayan

My late teacher, Bode Osanyin wrote the poem years ago. The versified play is being staged to commemorate the 19th year of the demise of the theatre legend. But that is not all. The highly philosophical and poetic play also speaks to humanity in a highly resonating way. The messages it carries are culturally laced and philosophically illuminating.

Well, the lead role in the performance we are having is highly talented Michael Richards whom, I promise, the audience are really going to find engaging and interesting. But I want to quickly note that the question of the protagonist in ‘Omo Odo’ is a vey problematic one because it is a story of humanity. On the surface, one would quickly believe it is the titular character, Omo Odo, but then, the story is much deeper than that. The theoretical framework of the work is itself revealing. Theatre scholars who are conversant with the Aristotelian theory of classical (western) tragedy are aware of the points that suggest that the classic hero must be of noble birth or blue blooded, though later later dramatists dispelled this this particular theory by making the hero of their works, a member of the working class.

A typical example of this can be seen in Arthur Miller’s ‘Death of A Salesman’ where the tragic hero, Willy Loman, is an ordinary salesman. Bode Osanyin in his characteristic pan African outlook also exhibits his decolonised worldview by making the tragic hero of this epic poem, a servant. Omo Odo is the Yoruba word for à domestic assistant or popular parlance, house help. However, Omo Odo is everyone of us. The work goes beyond its surface meaning. In the treatment of this work, humanity becomes the protagonist and the antagonist.

The vision is to highlight human navigation through the vicissitudes of life  as shown in the play. While it may, on the surface, appear like treating everyday but grievous issues like child abuse, injustice and inequality, the work is engaged in such a way that the multiplicity of meanings in ordinary words are shown. The vision is to shed light on the need to continually and rigorously interrogate our actions and every other ones around and about us. But, in doing this, care has been taken to ensure that the entertainment essence of the art is not done away with. This explains why the production is enriched with a fine blend of music, dance, drama and poetry.

 The experience has been enriching and revealing in more ways than one. First and foremost, we all know that live theatre birthed cinematic art so Crown Troupe taking live theatre productions to Kunle Afolayan’s KAP Hub has been à rewarding experience as reflected in the openness and acceptance Crown Troupe got from KAP Hub. Our audience also get to see theatre in à cinema! Generally, the famous filmmaker, Kunle Afolayan, is himself a practitioner and scion of one of the precursors of the Yoruba Traveling Theatre whose giant strides we are trying to emulate has proved his mettle.

He is very passionate about the theatre. As passionate as one can be. For instance, he has taken it upon himself to ensure that the venue is ever ready and, not only that, he designs the scenery himself. He sees things I miss sometimes. An amazing and rewarding collaboration if you ask me.

An experience not to be forgotten in a hurry. All they need do is show up. Ours is to ensure that we make it worth their while and efforts especially in these challenging times. They will feel the therapeutic power of theatre.

ABOUT THE PLAY