British Council Partners FirstBank On Lagos Festival 2016

The British Council in partnership with FirstBank has announced this year Lagos Theatre Festival taking place in Lagos Island. The art festival which is aimed to build new audiences, creating new collaborations and strengthening relationships between the UK and Nigeria is part of the FirstBank Nigeria Limited of First@arts initiative which is driven by the quest to promote the arts and preserve cultural heritage.

According to a statement signed by First Bank Head, Marketing and communications, Folake Ani-Mumuney, this year will engage New Voices in Theatre and submission of scripts for the Festival from emerging playwrights who have experiences of young people living in Lagos today.

“She said a record number of 64 applications were received over a four week period and four plays were shortlisted by a panel of writers for a creative writing workshop and script development. The plays are: Every Single Day by Olubunmi Familoni, The Wait by Bode Asiyanbi, Barcode Dialogue by Atinuke Aweda and Dialing Love by Paul Ugbede. The winning playwrights have been awarded a cash prize of #100,000 each with an option of producing their plays at the Lagos Theatre Festival scheduled for February 23 – 28 2016.

“The British Council has, for three years, been working on a theatre programme to stimulate innovation in theatre practice in Nigeria. The council sought to offer opportunities for professional exchange between Nigerian and British theatre makers and this birthed the Lagos Theatre Festival in 2012.

“The Lagos Theatre Festival 2016 will take place at several venues on Lagos Island and the mainland with a curated programme running alongside a fringe strand of affiliated performances allowing a greater than ever number of artists and audiences to take part. Tickets are available from February 1 at Naija ticket shop, Dealdey.com and TerraKulture.

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