By Prisca Sam-Duru

LAGOSIANS who gathered at the Agip Recital Hall of the Muson Center Lagos, for the stage performance of  Echoes From the Lagoon, a play written by Chief Rasheed Gbadamosi, witnessed two spell binding shows  that left the audience, engulfed in a hilarious atmosphere, through out the evening.

Echoes from the Lagoon,  staged last Saturday as one of the events held during the just concluded 2013   Muson Festival in Lagos, which was culture laden and as educating as it was entertaining, placed Nigeria under the prism.

The play which is one of Gbadamosi’s earliest books, was first premiered at the J K Randle Hall, Lagos on the 6th September, 1972 by the Phoenix Playgroup and was first published in December, 1973 by Onibonoje Press, Ibadan.

Chief Gbadamosi’s play as Directed by Dr Tunji, in all ramification, is as relevant at the time it was written as it is till date. What is perhaps the only difference is that the author wrote from the standpoint of the prevailing circumstances at the period it was written. It is however, regrettable that after not less than 40 years of authoring the book, those factors that undermined the nation as dramatically enumerated by the award winning author and Economist,  rather than being tackled by successive governments, have greatly transformed into huge monsters, currently rocking every sector in the country.

The humour laden performance featured Hafiz Ayetoro popularly known as Saka, who played the role of Ten-Ten;  Nollywood A-lister, Nobert Young (Chief Erinla), Joke Muyiwa( mama Tanko), Ola Rotimi Fakunle was Tanko,  while  Laide Adeyiga acted as comfort.

The play is satirical of the Lagos metropolis in particular, and also,exposes the high rate of moral decadence in the country where it is widely believed that nothing is impossible with money. It also exposes the huge gulf that exists between the rich and the poor and more importantly, makes a salient statement that some Nigerians may have been born with the monster called corruption, in their genes.

Stage props were aesthetically put together to depict two separate families, inhabited by individuals on two distinctive levels of existence. The actors’ costume was well on point as it took the audience down memory lane to the time the play was written as the Erinla’s, the rich, appear gorgeous while the Arowolo’s whose standard of living is in sharp contrast to that of the Erinla’s, who live  in shack.

Fate brings both families together through the poor youngster Tanko Arowolo and Comfort Erinla the rich girl. And surprisingly, it is seen here that behind the glamour, the rich unfortunately, wishes to be poor and vice versa. Their meeting however, theatrically exposes the dark secrets that most rich individuals harbour especially in the area of wishing they could experience the kind of peace of mind that the poor man enjoys. They both take their chance encounter further as we see Tanko, spending days alone with Comfort, resulting into pregnancy.

Tanko enlists in the army after several fruitless search for job. He returns later  not just with huge disappointment as always, but with a battered leg. After everything in his life fails, Tanko’s only hope of success, that is his baby, is aborted under durex by Chief Erinla who offers a whooping 5 thousand Pounds cash to Tanko, so he gets out of his daughter’s life.

The play in every theatrical sense, is still very meaningful as it raises angry voice against looting of public funds, poverty, unemployment, corruption, etc.

Biodun Batik and his band who appeared radiant in their old school attire,  supplied highlife tunes of yesteryears which were played as musical interlude before each scene was ushered in, to portray the home of the rich and the poor.