Isi Agboaye Livres

In this play, an emissary, Ancestor, akin to those in Esan folktales is sent to rescue many who are unlawfully imprisoned in my part of Africa. The awesome intervention eventually changes the focus of the nation positively, heralding the dawn of a new nation and the birth of true Independence. In creating the characters, I have attempted to contextualise the insidious oppression of many folks considered enemies of the state. On the flip side, some would imagine that those who should be in the prisons are those who have corruptly enriched themselves and oppressed the collectives in the nation. In the play, you will encounter real performers and impromptu performers drawn from the audience for the purpose or highlighting features of Theatre for Development and notions of Community Theatre, for the purpose of bringing Applied theatre closer to ordinary folks.

A group of ants are mandated by the Creator of all things to sanitise and reform the collectives of a failing nation; thereby putting them consciously on the unambiguous path of genuine Independence and development. Ancestor, a mythical character is sent from an unidentified intelligent part of the Universe to coordinate the process. He is assisted by Acolyte, one of the corrupt elements in the nation as the ants work mostly behind the scenes to teach the inhabitants of the nation how to achieve real change and development. Meanwhile, the whole nation is evacuated, and the people are quarantined underground in camps set up by ants for necessary sanitization as the development process instigate conversations in different forms.

The purpose of this collection is to encourage the reader to dramatise poems that reflect issues around the economic, political, and postcolonial elements from my African context. It is assumed that any aspect of the poems might stimulate a dramatic plot or useful for extending embedded metaphors. The reader is also encouraged to freely apply aspects of the poems to various issues in the community. Also, apart from reading the poems, it is anticipated that the elements of conflict in the words and images in the poems may be useful for creating new narratives that activate more change in the community. So, as you dramatically push the limits of your imagination, you may not only be reading for pleasure, but interrogating existing issues and opening doors for new meanings that would bring drama closer to the individuals and collectives in the community. Like folktales in my part of Africa, where words are greatly valued, aspects of these poems will be valuable for creating new meanings, fortifying identities, and generating changes that would remain indelible for years to come.