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| The JAGUA NANA Cast & Crew |
In Jagua Nana….
‘…we’ll give the audience brilliance… entertaining and educational piece of theatre” – Wole Oguntokun, director
My name is
WOLE OGUNTOKUN and I am a theatre producer and director. I studied law at the Obafemi Awolowo University and after practising for a while, I realized that law was not my calling but theatre. Theatre has always been my passion and a profession I wouldn’t mind burning my candles for at 2am.
Why Jagua Nana?
As a child, I have heard the story of Jagua Nana and it has always fascinated me. Jagua Nana is an extravagant story of one woman in search of a better life in Lagos, which everyone can relate to irrespective of your profession. It is about the hustle, the freedom, the changing faces of Lagos since the 60s and its ability of this place to kill a dream or make it. Lagos is more like then New York of Africa.
There were songs from the 60s about this woman and even though she never existed in reality, there was an entity that was created by Cyprian Ekwensi and that has always amazed me. When I got the call for this year’s MUSON Festival, I thought I could do a dramatization of Ekwensi’s novel. So I wrote a musical play version of Jagua Nana and it was chosen.
What can you say about the cast and crew?
I think we have a good selection of actors. Ashionye is playing Jagua Nana. I worked with her in 2008 when I directed ‘V Monologue’ and she was wonderful and fortunately for us she sings as well. There is Dolapo who is singer and an actor; Rotimi Fakunle who I have also worked with on several occasions; Muyiwa Odukale, who also brought in his son to be our saxophonist is also a colleague. My stage manager Kel, has been working with me for years now the others are either full time or part time members of Renegade Theatre and it has been wonderful working with all of them.
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| Wole Oguntokun - Theatre Producer |
What are the challenges in handling the production?
Every practitioner would say money; so I will try not to say that (laughs). Well, it will be turning this play into a musical and we have accomplished that and the people are integrating. So, so far, it has been good.
What should the audience expect from this play?
It’s just one word and it’s Brilliance! Brilliance of the actors, the writer of the novel, the director; just brilliance. Seriously speaking, they should expect a very entertaining piece, which is also very educative as well because the bright side also has its pitfalls and traps.
“Expect a fantastic jaguar Nana’s daughter…” – Ashionye Raccah
My name is
ASHIONYE MICHELLE RACCAH and I play the lead role of Jagua Nana. She is an experienced woman of wealth who wants to be free to see the world, live life in the big city with the finest things of life at her disposal. She meets a couple of men after her big move from the village to the city and falls in love with one of them who is actually a younger guy. One thing leads to another but you have to watch the play to find out.
What is the message behind Jagua Nana?
There are a lot of messages in the play; the message of love, societal messages and political message.
How has it been like working with the cast?
Everyone has been amazing we do a lot of laughing and at the same time helping each other with their lines. It’s like a small community of talented individuals. This is not exactly my first play. This is my first lead and first musical. I am very excited and everything has been going on well.
What is your opinion on the director?
Wole Oguntokun is a lover of the arts. He is a friend, and the easiest way I work is with friends, it makes my life easier. I respect him as a director and I respect him as an individual and a friend as well. It has been great because he is an awesome person to work with who doesn’t push and push like most directors would and he makes me comfortable with his special method of directing. It invariably brings out the best in me.
What are the challenges so far?
Everything has been well. It is still a work in progress. The play is not due until next weekend so we are still working on our musical numbers and lines so we can be perfect for our audience.
What should the audience expect?
They should expect a fantastic play with a lot of messages. The story of Jagua Nana is still related to the present day Nigerian society. It will make us have a rethink on the path the nation is going.
“Come with open mind, and enjoy good theatre” – Austin Onuoha
My name is
AUSTIN ONUOHA and I play the role of the owner of the band in the play and also a friend of Freddie who sets Jagua Nana up. Those are the roles I play in the musical drama.
What is the Jagua Nana all about?
Prior to this moment, I have heard a lot about the character Jagua Nana but I had not been lucky enough to come across the book since it was written in the 60s by Cyprian Ekwensi. It is about a woman and her quest for a better life irrespective of the sacrifices she has to make along the way. For Jagua Nana, the end always justifies the means.
What are the challenges?
The major challenge has been the music. Trying to score the lines since it was originally written for the stage but not as a musical. The director, a fantastic person has been amazing putting all these together.
What’s the relationship like among the cast?
It has been cordial. I have worked with majority of the cast, so it is very easy to blend in with all of them.
What should the audience expect?
They should expect to be entertained and they should come with an open mind and I assure them they would go home with utmost satisfaction.
“Jagua Nana will give you undiluted entertainment” -- Dolapo
My name is
DOLAPO OGUNWALE and I play the role of Rosa in the musical drama ‘Jagua Nana’. She is a Jagua’s very close friend who always looks out for her interest and they have known each other for many years shortly after jaguar arrived from the village. They are both hustlers who live together.
How has it been like so far working with Wole Oguntokun?
He clearly has a vision adapting Cyprian Ekwensi’s novel into a musical play and we are all part of this grand vision. Wole is a man of many talents. Anyone who has seen any of his plays would know that he is one of the best directors in the field and having to work with him is a fantastic experience for me. In general, it has been going very well.
What is the relationship like among the cast?
Everyone is completely professional and that has created a positive vibe among the actors; and that is very commendable. Renegade Theatre has a tradition of conducting some exercises before any rehearsal to further enhance the rapport that already exists among the cast and crew. The lead actor, Ashionye Raccah is phenomenal; she is a triple treat -- an actor, producer and a singer; and it has been wonderful working with her and the rest of the cast as well.
What should the audience expect?
This is a musical play about a woman who moved to Lagos in search of greener pasture but eventually life happened. They should expect to be educated on the harsh reality of life because things do not always turn out the way it is planned but fortunately or unfortunately, life happens and you have to go with the flow. They should also expect undiluted entertainment.
“Get set for a good, great performance…” -- Oguntade
My name is
MUYIWA ODUKALE and I am playing the role of Otunba Taiwo in the musical play Jagua Nana. He is a normal flamboyant politician in the Nigerian society who is a spendthrift. Just like our politicians today, we see him wield so much power with pride.
What challenges have you been faced with?
The major challenge has been to understand the unconventional theatre style being adopted by Renegade Theatre, which is the production outfit in charge of this play. Having come from the school of conventional theatre it’s a bit difficult adapting to this method of theatre practice where the cast contributes to the final output of the play. The director allows all actors to express themselves about the way the production should go and even though it’s alien, I appreciate this method a lot.
What kind of relationship exists among the cast and how does it feel like working on set with your son?
I feel elated that my son who is a saxophonist is part of this play and it doesn’t feel awkward at all because he has earned his place here. Then in respect to the relationship that exists among the casts, it’s more of a bond and this was achieved through the director’s unconventional method of theatre practice. Everyone is able to interact easily with each other irrespective of individual accomplishment and status.
What should the people expect?
They should expect a good performance. I am personally in love with musical drama because I like to sing. They should expect a great performance especially when you have professionals like Ashionye on board.
“…expect to be blown away by the performance” -- Fakunle
My name is
OLAROTIMI FAKUNLE and I am playing the role of Freddie; a cool, learned young hustler who happens to be Jagua Nana’s boyfriend. Fortunately or unfortunately pending on how you see It, he got intimately involved with Jagua Nana with the intention of using her as a ladder to climb to his next level in life.
What is the message behind Jagua Nana?
It is a story about of the life a woman who struggles to make ends meet against all odds. It is basically the story of survival.
What challenges have you faced in the course of this musical play?
(Sighs) I will say it’s the music. You have to train your voice to sing in tune in order not to make the audience cringe in their seats at the sound of your voice.
What is the relationship like among the cast?
Fortunately it is like a family unit. The team has bonded well and has created a communal spirit that flows through the entire cast and crew. I’ll commend the director who brought these amazing individuals together. All through the years I have worked with him, his apt for selecting the best cast has always enthralled me. It is a gift and something I wish to emulate.
What should your audience expect?
They should expect to see a great show, which they are going to be part of as well. They should expect to be blown away by the performance.
