Pandora's Box and other stories!

 My people I greet you! Saturday 13^th May was another fascinating day, I spent most of it at the Arcola Theatre in Dalston where Ade Solanke’s latest play ‘Pandora’s Box’ was on show alongside a day of workshops and talks with invited speakers such as Diane Abbott MP, Ron Belgrave (former head of Community Safety under two Mayors), Olu Alake (President 100Black Men Of London) etc. It was a fascinating day which Proud to be African Clothing was pleased to be invited as it covered so many of the themes that resonate in this clothing line, hence the Born in the UK Made in Nigeria T shirt picture which as you’ll see kind of resonates.

The play revolves around a family that is split between the London and Nigeria and takes place mostly in the living room of their house on Lagos. Pandora is the mother of Toyin and Ronke. The latter remaining in Nigeria while Pandora and her husband went to England to study. Toyin and Pandora have come to visit Nigeria for the first time since then with her friend Bev and 15 year old son Timi in tow.

Anna-Maria Nabirye playing Toyin 

Without spoiling the plot Timi is a typical inner London youth over indulged by his mother who is sinking deeper and deeper into London’s gang life, the family has decided he is to attend a prestigious boarding school in Nigeria in order to ‘sort him out’, however Toyin is having last minute cold feet. While big sister Ronke harbours a deep grudge against both mother Pandora and junior sister for abandoning her, Pandora feels guilty for abandoning her and for not coming back with her qualifications.

I really can’t say much more without spoiling the plot but it is an excellently written and brilliantly acted play that covers all the thorny issues of identity, parenthood and culture from all the angles, from a mother’s anguish, a child’s bitterness and sense of abandonment, the agonising choices a parent faces in trying to do the right thing. From a personal (and business) perspective it neatly encapsulates the idea behind my Born in the UK, Made in Africa/ Born in the UK, Made in Nigeria brand as I also left the UK and went to boarding school in Nigeria, although I look back upon it now as an extremely positive and life changing (in fact life forming) experience, a particular scene between Timi and Tope his friend from London who had made the transition to Nigerian school boy and was making a marked improvement reminded me of how difficult it was at the time.

All in all a brilliant play that addresses a pertinent issue not just of education and the role of culture and identity but of parenthood and that bad choices can be made with the best of intentions.

The afternoon matinee was preceded by a panel discussion headlined by Olu Alake and Ron Belgrave, with support and contributions from the Nigerian Youth Network, Yemisi Sanusi of International Day of African Childhood and its Youth (IDAY UK), Anne Olayinka of Youth against Crime not crime against Youth (YACnCAY), Black History Studies and Nigerian Women in Diaspora Leadership Forum.

Following the matinee performance there was another panel discussion with Diane Abbot MP, Olu Alake, Ron Belgrave, Ade Solanke and Waryla Abrahams, the lady whose dilemma actually inspired the play. This remarkable lady who is a teacher struggled with these issues with her son, who was unfortunately on a downward spiral yet today after his stint schooling back home he is an undergraduate studying Business Entrepreneurship.

The panels various stories and experiences neatly summed up many of the plays issues with Diane Abbott sharing her sons experience of 6^th Form in Ghana, with the experiences of having to fend for himself and Olu describing his experiences of studying back in Nigeria and stating that if he had the chance he would send every schoolchild back to experience what life is like living not as a ‘minority’.

There are so many choice lines in the play but I would say the most thought provoking one was by the character Bev when she said: “What do you see out of that window? People, right? Just people. Because there are no ‘Black’ people in Africa. Let him experience that for a change.”

Pandoras Box is directed by Ola Animashawun, Assistant Director Moji Kareem.

Susan Aderin plays Pandora, mother of Ronke and Toyin

 Damson Idris plays Timi’s friend Tope this is his debut play he is currently studying at Brunel University

Bradley John puts in an excellent debut turn playing Toyin’s son Timi

Petra Letang formerly on Eastenders plays Toyin’s Antiguan (not Jamaican!) friend Bev

Anna-Maria Nabirye plays Toyin

Yetunde Oduwole a Tiata Fahodzi favourite and the mother in ‘Meet the Adebanjo’s’plays Ronke

Ben Onwukwe of London’s Burning fame plays Principal Osun

Tunji Sotimirin who plays Baba is a lecturer at the University at Lagos currently on sabbatical at Goldsmiths College

Pandoras Box is running until 26^th May at Arcola Tent, performance time is 7.30pm (matinee 3.00pm), tickets: £14 (£10 concessions).

GO AND SEE IT!!!

Also that Saturday evening saw the launch of a new talk show Effizi which celebrates achievers of Nigerian heritage, from all walks of life and fields of endeavour. Special guest for this show was Dr. Kunle Onabolu a Civil Engineering graduate, where he obtaining an MSc and PhD in Concrete Structures at the age of 28 from Imperial College London. From being the technical business manager at Redland Technologies, a FTSE 100 company, where he developed new materials formulation he was head of process development at Lafarge UK until 2002, when he left to form his own company KAO Project Solutions Ltd. KAO is an innovative company that provides consultancy and project management services in transportation infrastructure. In 1998, Dr. Onabolu founded a charity African Child Trust and is founding president of the Engineering Forum of Nigerians (EFN).

NEXT WEEK AND BEYOND- A few more events (and plays) to come

On Wednesday 16^th May LERECA is holding their ‘Apero’ (it’s all very Francophone!!) at 7pm at Cotton Restaurant, 70 Exmouth Market EC1, this event is meant to bring together peoples from all over the African and Caribbean diaspora (Anglophone, Francophone, Lusophone) to network for business and leisure, it’s a nice chilled out way to meet likeminded people in a great venue.

Friday 18^th May see’s the Ghana Golden Opportunities 2012 at Grange City Hotel, 8-14 Coopers Row, EC3N 2BQ , the theme is ‘Investment & Business Opportunities in Ghana’ and will consiust of presentations by Tullow Oil Plc,  UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), Ghana High Commission UK & many more Q & A and Networking. The aim is to provide a platform for Ghanaian Diaspora Entrepreneurs and
Professionals to learn more about the investment & business opportunities available for them in Ghana.

On Saturday 19^th May the London Business School Africa Club will hold the their Africa Day at London Business School, NW1 4SA. The theme is ‘Africa, Taking Ownership: Successes & Challenges’. The conference will explore and celebrate the many ways in which Africans are taking ownership for their continent’s destiny, driving reforms, building capacity and propelling growth from within.

The Womenfor Africa Awards UK will also hold that day at 5pm at The Great Hall, Kensington Town Hall, Homton Street, London, W8 7NX, the awards gala promises to be an evening filled with entertainment in the form of music and comedy, networking and the honouring of some of the most outstanding African women in UK.

On Sunday 20^th Rita Ray and Max Reinhardt of ‘The Shrine’ return for another Mwalimu Express at Rich Mix featuring  awesome music from around the continent. Come join in the stupendous storytelling sessions, Screen Station films and far out family arts workshops.

On Wednesday 23^rd May a brand new play by an African female writer opens at the Soho Theatre. ‘Egusi Soup’ by Janice Okoh, is a fast, furious and funny intergenerational and cross cultural family comedy about the Anyia’s as they pack their suitcases to head home to Lagos for a memorial service to honour the lat Mr Anyia. There’s mothers fathers, pastors and of course Egusi Soup!

The writer Janice Okoh won the Bruntwood Prize and was short listed for the Verity Bargate Award ad the Alfred Fagon Award and wrote the play to honour her late father and try and communicate the different attitudes one has to death and life and to write a play that showed the humorous side of the diaspora experience. The play stars award winning actress Ellen Thomas (Eastenders), early bird tickets (23-25 May) are £10.00, 26 May – 9 June £12.50 (conc.’s £10.00), 6-9 June £15.00 (conc.’s (£12.50)

Bola Agbaje’s play ‘Belong’ is still showing at Jerwood Theatre Upstairs, the Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square, SW1W 8AS till 26^th May and then onto  The Bussey Building, 133 Rye Lane, London SE15 4ST from 31st May to 26th June

The sun seems to be back, here’s to an African summer!!

Rains and Plays.....its MAY!!!!

Rain, rain go away!!

Maybe I spoke to soon in my last post!

I’m thinking that I might need to start a line of Proud to be African wellington boots and rain coats in addition to the hoodys and T shirts with the way this rain is falling! I didn’t know the UK had a rainy season as well!

Despite the ever so soggy weather there has been a veritable array of sunshiney events lined up for you good people.

Africa 2.0 UK launch panel

I attended the Africa 2.0 UK launch at the Pearson Centre, London, last week which was a fascinating event hosted by Henry Bonsu of Colourful Radio., with a stellar panel featuring Dr Mo Ibrahim the telecoms entrepreneur of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation  fame. Africa 2.0 is a pan African global initiative, seeking to formulate a new leapfrog-based approach to development in Africa built upon collective knowledge and the experiences of a broad spectrum of Africans back home and in the diaspora. There was a panel discussion with Dr. Ibrahim, Dr. Shiyghan Navti (IBM Software Group) , Amina Adewusi (Standard Chartered Group) and Hephzi Tagoe (Founder of MiS-UK) chaired the by Henry Bonsu

A wonderfully refreshing event with lots of home truths from Dr Ibrahim that chime which PTBA’s themes of self reliance, enterprise and the importance of telling ones own story. Africa 2.0 is a relatively new group in the UK and we hope to be working with them more in future.

The  'The African Or Black Question (TAOBQ)'  Campaign championed by Kwaku of BBM/BBC held a workshop on ‘What does it mean to be a Global African? ’ on the 28^th as a prelude to a series of events coming up later this month

On Monday the 30^th of April, AFFORD another great diaspora organisation held a day long event on Impact funding through the diaspora at the Brunei Gallery at the School of Oriental and African Studies, again featuring a wide array of subject matter experts in the field of enterprise, development and diaspora engagement.

Upcoming Events

Coming up though there is a wide array of events for you lucky lucky people:

On Wednesday 2^nd May at 7pm the London Black Business Incubator and Investment Group will be meeting at the 5^th level of the Royal Festival Hall at the South Bank Centre for their inaugural meeting.

On 4^th May Proud to be African favourite El Crisis will be holding the monthly Word, Power and Sound event at Centreprise Bookshop and Cafe, 136 Kingsland High Street, Dalston, E8 2NS

This new monthly event of Words delivered with Power that carry rhythmic Sound vibrations. El Crisis will have as special guests Native sun, Aamasade, Lionheart, ShakaRa, Leafy Bee, Taniya Sonko, Shadow and 9 Drummer. Tickets are £6.00 in advance and £8.00 on the door.

                             

 On 5^th May there will be the Pan African Conference Oxford 

at 9.00am at Wesley Memorial Church Hall, New Inn Hall Street, OX1 2DH, Oxford. The theme is ‘Building Capacity for a New Generation: The Case for Youth Leadership in Africa’ with a stellar line up of speakers such as Vera Songwe (World Bank Country Director for The Gambia, Senegal, Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau, and Mauritania), Sanusi Lamido Aminu Sanusi (Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria), He Liehui (Managing director of Touchroad International Holdings Group), June Arunga Kimani (CEO of Open Quest Media LLC and a founding partner of Black Star Line SA), Matthew Kukah (Catholic Archbishop of Sokoto Diocese in Nigeria and a former Secretary-General of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria), Arthur G. O. Mutambara (Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Zimbabwe), Gbenga Sesan ( Executive Director of Paradigm Initiative Nigeria), Patrick G. Awuah Jnr ( Founder and President of Ashesi University College) and many others

On the 6^th May Natural November will be at Chelsea Old Town Hall Bar, SW3 between 11am and 7pm. Now the fact that the event is called Natural November but is holding in May should not confuse you, this is the second install of the very successful event that held at the Africa Centre last November. Debrose the organiser has decided that there should be a summer version and thus we are having the May incarnation, this event will see Toyin Agbetu, BBC Radio's Valley Fontaine and  Winsome 'Lyrical Healer' Duncan and from the US Ansylla of My Hairitage .Tickets from £12.50 each or two for £20 in advance, £15 on the door, £10 after 3pm. The first 100 purchased online will receive a VIP goody bag on arrival.

I am still trying to persuade her to have meat based products but I think I’m fighting a losing battle!!!

Also on Sunday 6th May Focus Organisation will be partying with Future Groove, kicking off the bank holiday at The Luxe, Old Spitalfields Market, 109 Commercial Street, E1 6BG from 7pm-Midnight, for your £5 entry you get soul Jazz Funk band Future Groove and DJs Bogossy & Oya Bun playing Afrobeat, Coupe Decale, Kurduro, Kwaito, Naija Beat, Highlife and Azonto

Tis also the season for plays by Nigerian playwrights, Bola Agbaje’s Belong is playing to sold out crowds each night (I know this as my usual last minute dot com attempts to get tickets were futile!) from 26^th April to 26^th May at Jerwood Theatre Upstairs, the Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square, SW1W 8AS.

Bola Agbaje’s satirical new play is a co production with Tiata Fahodzi  and questions our notion of home about a failed British Nigerian MP who flees back to Nigeria and gets tangled up in escapades back home.

It’s all fascinating and I promise to review it soon as I get to see it! This is Bola Agbaje’s 3^rd incarnation at the Royal Court her first Gone Too Far (2007) was followed by Off the Endz (2010). Her debut play won an Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement and was also nominated for Most Promising Playwright at the Evening Standard Awards. She is currently working with UK production company Poisson Rouge and the UK Film Council to turn the play into a feature film. She is also a proud owner of a Proud to be African hoody so she is obviously not just talented and beautiful but of impeccable taste!
As an additional treat there is an additional run at The Bussey Building, 133 Rye Lane, London SE15 4ST from 31st May to 26th June

Ade Solanke’s play ‘Pandora’s Box’ opens on 9^th May and runs till the 26^thof May,  at the Arcola Theatre, 24 Ashwin Street, E8 3DL  Dalston. Ola Animashawun directs this potent new play, which is billed as a lively and compelling examination of loyalty, love and betrayal. Again another play examining the themes of being Born in the UK but Made in Africa with a mother struggling to decide whether to leave her streetwise London child at a strict Lagos boarding school or take him back to the mean streets of inner London

Next time we meet I hope to have some reviews of the plays and reports from some of the events

May we meet in sunnier times!!!