Artiste tells the story of Lagos in play, “Omo Eko”, to showcase rich culture

Anthony Oluwabiyi, Executive Director, Theatre Centrik, on Saturday said the rich cultural and historical values of Lagos will be exhibited on stage play and online on December 2020 to uphold the state’s beautiful culture.

Oluwabiyi, who disclosed this in an interview with our correspondent in Lagos, said that the title of the play would be: “Omo Eko: Tale of Birth and Place”, which he wrote.

He said that “Omo Eko” is a detailed unique story set to exhibit the rich culture of Lagos, as one of the biggest and most accommodating state in Nigeria.

He explained that the play will bring together all parts of Lagos in its diverse cultures, tell the tale of the daily struggle of an average Lagosian, waking up at dawn to make a living.

According to him, the play is expected to feature over 100 renowned creative artistes.

”When you hear of a place that welcomes you with wide-opened arms on your arrival no matter where you are coming from, when you remember a place that is not just home but origin of giants and great minds, you remember Lagos State called “Eko Ile” by the indigenous people, it is worthy to celebrate this place and its people not only with medals or petals of gold but by telling the story of its unique and colorful nature.

”Omo Eko – A tale of Birth and Place” is a story created for the stage to captivate the audience and take them on a journey of Eko “Aró dédé májàá”.

”Theatre Centrik invites lovers of Lagos, Arts and History to support this project as we celebrate together the true Nigerian spirit in Lagos,” he said.

Oluwabiyi said that the play will promote the culture of history preservation and archives, painting Lagos as the centre of excellence that it truly is and serving as a unifying factor to various tribes residing in Lagos.

He said the play is also meant to harness many raw talents by creating a platform for showcasing these talents, thereby encouraging creativity among teens and youths in the state, Nigeria and Africa as a whole.

Theatre Centrik has been able to give clear details of EKO from its past event, “EKO N’JO”, used to celebrate Lagos at 50.

”We told the story with Eko N’jo and now we hope to broaden the historiography with Omo Eko.

”The event will be managed by Olumuyiwa Adebayo, with Okedigun arts, Osagie, as the Play Director while Halimath Alabi will be the Director of movement,” he said.