THE iconic, international and award winning stage musical, Kakadu by popular demand returned with an improved cast. The dance drama which was staged on December 29th and 30th 2015, will be on again from 1st to the 3rd of January 2016. Kakadu The Musical, Nigeria’s first ever contemporary stage musical, which is an exciting and eclectic blend of music, drama and dance is a tribute to the period and infinite possibilities of Nigeria in the sixties and early seventies.

Until the last decade of the 20th century, a common myth among the students population of Government College, Umuahia was that the people of Abam were human head hunters or killers, kidnappers and even cannibals who relished serving as mercenaries or hired warriors. This derogatory image of Abam remained what it was, a myth, yet it was widely accepted among the student population as truth. The result was that many of the few students from Abam who were lucky to attend that elite school, simply hid their identities behind neighbouring communities such as Ohafia, Abiriba and even Arochukwu.

I started writing from my undergraduate days in the university, precisely in the third year when there was a course called Noon theatre, and in the course, you are expected to produce a play with your group, so I toyed with the idea of producing another person’s play and on second thought, I said no, let me use my class project because we write plays as part of play writing courses. I used that my 3rd year play which I called an Only Son then and I was surprised at the way it was well received by both my fellow students and even the lecturers.

Art, culture and tourism have been described as sectors that can move Nigeria’s economy forward aside oil and gas. This assertion was disclosed by some art enthusiasts in Lagos recently during an exhibition of paintings by Rauf Thompson tagged ‘Breaking new points in visual art’.

A new stage drama in musical performance called ‘Wakaa the Musical’ which will be premiering this yuletide season have been described as one with magic wand, showcasing Intrigues, betrayals and games people play in life. Coming under the auspice of the award winning producer, Bolanle Austen-Peters’ Production (BAP), the new world class dance drama sensation in ‘Broadway style’ will hit stage at Shell Hall, MUSON Centre in late December to early week of January, 2016.

LINGUISTS in Nigeria have called on the Federal Government to undertake language survey, documentation and analysis of oral legislature and lexicon to have a correct statistics of languages in the country and to prevent them from going to extinction. They noted that some of these languages, which signify the strength and diversity of Nigeria were practically dying or disappearing due to recognition given to one language by law over another and the desirability of the users to abandon their languages over others.

Violence against women and girls has suddenly become a normal but disturbing reality considering the rate at which even minors as young as 10 month old babies are increasingly becoming victims of sexual abuse by their close relatives. This is a desperate situation and as they say, desperate situation calls for desperate measures. In line with raising awareness and triggering action to end the global scourge of violence against women and girls, the Simi Johnson Organisation in collaboration with Mainevents and Campaigns Limited, presents the critically acclaimed stage play – ‘ A past came calling’.

The Ikeji Festival is one of the biggest festival of the Aros of the south Eastern Nigeria. It is an annual festival of thanksgiving, merriment and propitiation, which comes up either in the month of March or April every year. The festival is very rich, in both historical and cultural festivities, filled with scintillating performances from masquerades, memorable sights, comic acts and magical dances from different dance groups.

On Saturday October 24, 2015, Lagos State began enjoying another level of beautification with glowing colours from stunning images by Nigeria’s finest and award-winning photographers, as well as images from renowned international artists, courtesy of the Lagos Photo Festival. The festival which ends on November 27, attracted an overwhelming turn out of art enthusiasts, art aficionados, Caucasians, artists and many more, who thronged the Escalator Entrance of the Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos, to have a glimpse of aesthetics, creativity and innovation at its best.

Former President of Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria and Founder of Gaurapad Charities, Bolaji Rosiji, celebrated Nigeria’s Independence with members of staff by unveiling a special welfare package tagged ‘Heroes award’. The event held at the Guarapad multi-purpose hall, Maryland, attracted over one hundred and fifty Gaurapad staff from across West Africa. Most of the staff had been in suspense for a month as to what the event, tagged Gaurapad Heroes, was all about.