femi osofisan @ 60 - June 14
FEMI OSOFISAN@ 60: CELEBRATING A LIFE IN ART AND COMMITMENT Femi Osofisan is a critic, poet, novelist, essayist, lecturer, editor, publisher, culture activist, the most prolific, most performed and the most enthusiastically received playwright in Nigeria. He has written and produced over 40 plays. Numbered among them are Midnight Hotel, Morountodun, Who is Afraid of Solarin?, Birthdays are not for the Dying, and his latest play, Ajayi Crowther. His poems published under the pseudonym, Okinba Launko are Minted Coins and Dream Seeker on Diving Chain. His writing employs a range of literary devices such as humour, irony, song, dance folktale and fables. No doubt Osofisan says one of his favourite books is Toyin Falola's A Mouth Sweeter than Salt. Reason being “the quality of its language, its extraordinary use of proverbs, its humour, its sense of history, and the robust and rippling picture it paints of the history and the politics of Ibadan at a time contemporaneous with my own life in the city.”
Femi Osofisan was born 60years ago in Erunwon Village in the old western region of Nigeria. He was educated at the universities of Ibadan, Dakar and Paris. He has held several posts and won several awards, the most recent, the 2006 Fonlon-Nichols Award bestowed annually on an African writer for excellence in creative writing and for contributions to the struggles for human rights. Osofisan is stationed as the President of Pen Nigerian centre and was the immediate General Manager of the National Theatre, Lagos. He is married to Nike Osofisan, the first Nigerian PhD holder in Computer Science and they have four children.
Speakers include:
Biodun Jeyifo; Ossie Enekwe; Akinwunmi Isola; Olu Obafemi
- and - Folabo Ajayi-Soyinka; Promise Okekwe; Olu Obafemi; Yakubu Nasidi; Reuben Abati; Sola Olorunyomi -- and - Odia Ofeimun
Moderator: Ohi Alegbe
Date: Wednesday, 14 June 2005
Time: 4:00 – 6:30pm
Venue: Jazzhole,
168 Awolowo Road, Ikoyi.
*TEXT: A Press Release
*PHOTO: Taken at Terra Kulture, Lagos, 7 September 2005 - by MW
posted by Wordsbody at 6:26 pm
3 Comments:
Thank you so much for reminding me of Prof's birthday. I am really stupid by forgetting it...
Ten years ago i played Digbaro in one of Osifisan's plays Twingle Twangle a Twynnig tales , that was ten years ago, and it was to commemorate his 50th birthday anniversary Suprinsingly, Okinba launko is 60. How time flies ?I cant say much about him because so much has been said already, his literary ingenuity, his passion for humanity, Femi Osofisan is a combintation of very good every human being aspires.My short time of apprenticeship with him has seen a dramatic influence in my life.
Thanks Elereko for always giving us your pocket of generosity to steal from.Ase yi samodun o, Emi yin a se pupo odun laye .Ase
It was an exhilarating moment for me on the 13th of June as I organized The Celebration of a Literary Icon, Femi Osofisan at 60 at the Performing Arts department of the Redeemer’s University. I was elated to have the likes of Biodun Jeyifo, Dr. and Mrs. Malomo, Nduka Otiono and others at the ceremony which witnessed readings of Femi Osofisan’s Poems from Minted Coins and songs from Twingle Twangle…a play I acted so many minor roles as part of his 50th birthday ceremony when I was an undergraduate at the University of Ibadan.
He is my father in the dramatic arts, my teacher, artistic director (Kakaun Sela Company) and my mentor whose record I secretly aspire to beat. And so I was glad when he honoured my invitation making it the first time F.O would enter the Redemption camp. As part of the celebration, F.O spoke on THE CREATIVE WRITER AS A CATALYST TO NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT and also inaugurated the Redeemer’s University’s Literary Circle (RLC)
Many Happy Returns, Ekun
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