Eyin'juOdu

The Guardian on Sunday, 24 July 2011 BY ANOTE AJELUOROU .Mr. Fred Agbeyegbe, also fondly called ‘Uncel Fred’ in theatre cirlces, is a powerful voice in the Nigerian theatre. Although trained as a lawyer, his fame in the theatre far exceeds his involvement in the legal profession. Agbeyegbe turned 76 last Friday and had a big celebratory event in his honour yesterday at the National Theatre, where he was given the Grand Living Legend of the NigerianTheatre award, the first of its kind. His play BUDISO also enjoyed a command performance. Early in the week, ANOTE AJELUOROU sought him out on a revelatory journey into his first involvement in the theatre and how he was able to sustain it close to two decades with such impact. Excerpts: What special feeling comes with attaining 76 years, sir? Well, it’s been a long way coming. I thank God for everything; for being born, and for making us to realise that life is about doing it the way God wants it done. I have the good lord to...

(The Guardian on Sunday, 24 July 2011 00:00 Jide Ogungbade Sunday Magazine - Arts ) .Lawyer, poet an playwright, Fred Agbeyegbe was 76 on Friday. The Lagos chapter of the National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners, NANTAP, set up a party in his honour with the staging of one of his plays, BUDISO, which he wrote and produced in 1986 to mark 100 years of the legal profession in Nigeria. The celebration billed for next weekend, ought to have happened last year to commemorate his 75th birthday anniverssary but had to be postponed till this year. In this piece, poet, theatre director and broadcaster, Jide Ogungbade, who directed Agbeyegbe’s plays in the 80s under Ajo Productions Company, examines the essences of Agbeyegbe’s plays.?The essay was originaly written for inclusion in the book of tributes, The Playwright and His Ideology: A Celebration of Fred Agbeyegbe, which will also be launched next week as part of the birthday commemoration. The artistic ideolo...

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