Soyinka’s play relived on MUSON stage

Soyinka’s play relived on MUSON stage 

By Prisca Sam-Duru 






Students of Childville School performing ‘Death and the King’s Horseman,’ by Wole Soyinka


The Yoruba cosmology (belief in the living, the dead, and the unborn) was the focus of The Childville Schools’ annual drama performance held Friday 16 June at the Agip Recital Hall, MUSON Centre, Lagos, when it re-enacted Wole Soyinka’s Death and the King’s Horseman, directed by Mr. Gboyega Biletan Jerome. Students of Childville School performing ‘Death and the King’s Horseman,’ by Wole Soyinka The play, which is one of Prof. Soyinka’s tragedies, is based on a real incident that took place in Nigeria during British colonial rule. It presents the Yoruba worldview. The drama focuses on the element connecting the three worlds according to the Yoruba Cosmology, which is transition. Transition according to this view, is regarded as the pathway on which members of the different worlds meet and interact. The king has just died as curtain opens on the play. Preparations for the ritual ceremonies are in full gear for his burial and we see Eleshin Oba known as the king’s Horseman, who is destined to commit suicide to ensure a peaceful passage for the king. Eleshin Oba, acted by Damilola Akanni, is attired in glorious robes. He enters the village market place in a majestic dance procession followed by Olohuniyo the praise singer ( Opeyemi Ogundimu) and dances till he goes into a trance. One wonders at this juncture why a person on his death trip would be rejoicing in such majestic manner. But then, it’s all about a people’s culture. His enthusiasm to fulfill what he considered to be a big honour – to die along with his king – is however truncated by the intervention of the British colonial district officer, Mr. Simon Pilkings.  Mr Pilkings, acted by Daniel Eta, sees the proposed ritual suicide as barbaric, senseless, and in order to prevent Eleshin Oba from killing himself, arrests him. Eventually Eleshin Oba’s son Olunde (Iniubong Ini-Inyang) comes home from England where he is studying to become a doctor. Surprisingly, he tries in vain to get Pilkings to understand the importance of his father committing the ritual suicide. Out of shame for his father’s failure, he kills himself. What happens next to Eleshin Oba is better seen or read than imagined. Those who are familiar with Prof. Soyinka’s works can testify that they are usually not easy nuts to crack. “I’ve been acting in the school for 5 years now but this was very difficult. You know how Prof. Soyinka’s plays are. We had to learn the words first to be sure we understood what he meant so that we can act it out. Thank God it all went well,” Damilola Akanni stated. The Artistic Director Mr. Jerome expressed excitement that the children performed above expectation considering the technicalities of the play. “Trust Prof Soyinka’s works, we had our dictionaries beside us while rehearsing and some words were replaced by simpler ones to help the actors get into the characters,” Mr. Jerome said.