Skip to main content

Ake bookfest promises a first-class experience

The Festival Director, Ms Lola Shoneyin has Byenyan Jessica Bitrus, Media and Communications Manager to her left, while Tosin Adeyemi, the Festival's Finance Manager is on her right.

The Festival Director, Ms Lola Shoneyin has Byenyan Jessica Bitrus, Media and Communications Manager to her left, while Tosin Adeyemi, the Festival’s Finance Manager is on her right.

Despite the constraints of recession, the Director of the Ake Book and Arts Festival, Ms Lola Shoneyin has promised that this year’s festival will be nothing short of a “first class event for a first class audience”.

Speaking at a press luncheon to unveil the programme of events, she stated that this year’s festival, themed “Beneath This Skin” is focused on starting conversations about the African perspective of identity and assured that it will serve as a cultural hub that will not only unite art enthusiasts but will also appeal to the uninterested.

The five-day event will feature book chats, creative workshops, art exhibitions, drama and poetry nights, a musical concert and film screenings in what Ms Shoneyin promises will be an all-round coverage of the arts.

This year will also see the introduction of a short film festival that will feature Shade Adeniran’s “A Mother’s Journey,” Udo Oyeka’s “No Good Turn” and Umar Turaki’s “Salt”.

The festival’s line-up also includes 18 authors who will take part in 9 book chats, and 12 panel discussions that cover erotica, prison stories and horror fiction.

Author and Nobel Prize nominee, Ngugi wa Thiong’o headlines the festival and will share his life’s experiences in a chat with novelist and scholar Okey Ndibe.

The award-winning Kenyan author will also lead a discussion about prison stories alongside Kunle Ajibade and Chris Anyanwu, both journalists who were imprisoned under the military dictatorship of late Gen. Sani Abacha.

In ensuring that the festival is not strictly restricted to books, the organisers have also included musical performances from Brymo, Falana and Adunni Nefertiti. Debo Oluwatuminu’s play “Iyalode of Eti,” which is an adaptation of John Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi is present in the programme as well as an exhibition of Laolu Sebanjo’s body art. Film is further represented by Marguerite Abouet’s “Aya de Yopougon” and Mahamat Haroun’s “Hissene Habre: A Chadian Tragedy”.

The Festival Director, Ms Lola Shoneyin has Byenyan Jessica Bitrus, Media and Communications Manager to her left, while Tosin Adeyemi, the Festival's Finance Manager is on her right.

The Festival Director, Ms Lola Shoneyin has Byenyan Jessica Bitrus, Media and Communications Manager to her left, while Tosin Adeyemi, the Festival’s Finance Manager is on her right.

The Ake Book and Arts Festival will hold at the Arts and Cultural Centre in Abeokuta from 15 to 19 November.

Adefoyeke Ajao

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Houthis Claim Attack on Central Israel in Response to Gaza ‘Massacres’

The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas has taken a concerning regional turn as the Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed responsibility for an attack on central Israel. The group announced this as part of their escalating response to what they describe as "massacres" in Gaza amid the Israeli military’s operations in the strip. Details of the Attack The Houthis, a Shiite militant group with ties to Iran, declared that they launched missile and drone strikes targeting Israel. While the exact impact of these attacks remains unclear, reports suggest that Israel’s defense systems intercepted several threats over its airspace. This marks a significant escalation as the Houthis widen their involvement in the conflict beyond their typical operations within Yemen and neighboring Saudi Arabia. The Houthis’ Justification In their statement, the Houthis framed the attack as retaliation for Israel’s military actions in Gaza, which they characterized as indiscriminate bombings resultin...
Post a Comment
Read more

Fire: UniJos Senate convenes emergency meeting on Monday

Fire at the University of Jos Library University of Jos is to convene an emergency senate meeting on Monday to review the level of damage done to the institution by the Saturday night inferno. The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Sebastian Maimako, disclosed this on Sunday after inspecting areas affected by the incident. The fire, which lasted for more than six hours, destroyed the Library Complex that equally houses the faculties of management and social sciences. The fire also destroyed examination scripts, books and very crucial materials. Consequently, the vice-chancellor said “the Senate will meet tomorrow (Monday) to take a decision about the unmarked examination scripts that were burnt.” On the cause of the inferno, Maimako said investigation had commenced, adding that “nothing has been confirmed yet. We are still investigating.” The vice chancellor said the school was already working with federal authorities toward establishing a main fire station since the mini fire station in t...
Post a Comment
Read more

UK gets new prime minister Wednesday

Britain Home Secretary Theresa May to be officially unveiled as UK’s new Prime Minister on Wednesday David Cameron is to step down as Prime Minister on Wednesday after Prime Minister’s Questions. Theresa May will succeed him. An eurozone’s top official says it’s important that Britain’s next prime minister gets on with sorting out the implications of Britain’s decision to leave the European Union as soon as possible, reports Associated Press. Speaking after it became apparent that Theresa May could replace David Cameron as soon as this week, Jeroen Dijsselbloem said the next British prime minister will have to “find solutions for the Brexit which has been causing a lot of problems particularly for the U.K., but also for Europe.” He said that the “sooner we can sort out this problematic situation the better.” Dijsselbloem spoke ahead of a meeting of the eurozone’s 19 finance ministers in Brussels. Though Britain’s decision to leave the EU isn’t a primary topic of discussion, the ...
Post a Comment
Read more