The main attraction for visitors to the iconic National Theatre Complex, Iganmu, Lagos, last Sunday, was the highly anticipated grand finale and command performance by participants at the one month-long annual Children Creative S
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, Mrs. Ibukun Odusote, on the set with the children cast of the play Hansel and Gretel, which rounded off the 2012 edition of the National Troupe of Nigeria ‘s Children Creative Station
tation (CSS).
And the body language expressed at the end of the nearly two-hour show was that of delight at the level and quality of artistic showcase displayed by the young minds on the stage of the jam-packed Cinema hall 2 of the complex.
Further endorsements poured in as the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, Mrs. Ibukun Odusote, expressed satisfaction with the work embarked upon by the troupe aimed at unearthing and occupying the future great talents that abound in the country.
Now in its third edition, the annual long vacation theatre workshop organized annually by the National Troupe of Nigeria debuted in August 2010 designed essentially for children between the ages of five to eighteen to expose participants to theatre practice and appreciation of drama in such a manner that their creative talents can be fully harnessed, nurtured and developed to realize their imaginative potentials.
This year’s edition closed with a play titled; Hansel and Gretel, by Ian Faraday and Andrew Oxspring. The play was directed on stage by Coordinator of the project and Director in charge of Drama at the National Troupe, Ms Josephine Igberaese.
“We believe that by engaging them creatively, they will not only take their minds off certain known vices during the long holiday but they will be able to harness and polish their individual creative talents,” Artistic Director of National Troupe Mr. Martin Adaji explained.
Speaking on the exercise, the Artistic Director of National Troupe Mr. Martin Adaji explained that the CSS aims at engaging the children creatively during the long vacation. He also stated that it is aimed at not only fostering the imaginative skills of children which is in line with the Troupe’s objective of encouraging the development of children theatre.
Participants undertake basic dance, music, drama and puppetry routines rounded off by a special command performance, which is a product of the one month intensive training staged to close the workshop as it has become a tradition.
Defending the choice of a foreign work for command performance by the participants, Adaji further explained that the choice was deliberate for both last year and this year’s edition, as, according to him, we are proposing to be part of the Contacting The World Children’s Theatre project held annually in the United Kingdom and one of the requirement is that participating children theatre companies must present plays other than those from their countries.’
“So we shall send a recording of this command performance to the Contacting The World organizers for consideration ahead of the 2013 edition, “he said, further adding: “Recall that the National Troupe was part of the Contacting The World children’s theatre project in 2001 and we took the likes of Segun Adefila and Steve Onu (aka Yaw) to present Dr. Ahmed Yerima’s Fall of a King. The new regulation is for countries to present works written about children from other climes hence our choice of Hansel and Gretel.”
It would be recalled that the maiden and second edition closed with a command performance of Tolu Omojola’s Colours of the Rainbow and Noel Grieg’s Whispers in the Dark respectively which was staged for theatre goers, parents, teachers and students.
The drama director also said the 2012 edition will be better in scope and content compared to the previous editions. “We have expanded the content to include voice training, pantomime and the usual storytelling, singing, dancing, acting and creative writing” she said.
The play Hansel and Gretel tells the story of a poor woodcutter and his wife who had two children named Hansel and Gretel. Their mother died when they were young. Hansel and Gretel were very sad. Soon their father remarried but their stepmother was very cruel.
One day, she took the children deep into the forest and left them there. Clever Hansel had some breadcrumbs in his pocket and had dropped them on the way so that they could find their way back home. Alas! The birds ate all the crumbs and they couldn’t find the path that led back home.
Hansel and Gretel went deeper and deeper into the forest. They were hungry and tired. Finally, after walking for a long time, they saw a cottage made of chocolate, candies, and cake. Now, a wicked witch lived there. When she saw Hansel and Gretel, she wanted to eat them. She grabbed the children and locked them in a cage. The witch decided to make a soup out of Hansel and eat him first. She began boiling a huge pot of water for the soup. Just then, Gretel crept out of her cage. She gave the wicked witch a mighty push from behind and the witch fell into the boiling water. She howled in pain and died instantly.
Hansel and Gretel found treasure lying around the cottage. They carried it home with them. Their stepmother had died and their father welcomed them back with tears of joy. They never went hungry again.
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