Literary giant, Ngugi Wa Thiong’o, will headline the 2016 Ake Festival. For lovers of literature and the arts, the festival which starts from the 15th and ends on the 19th November, is not an event to miss. It will take place at the Arts and Culture Centre, Abeokuta. Every year, since 2013, Ake has hosted an outstanding roster of writers, thinkers, artists, filmmakers, musicians, book lovers and art enthusiasts. The Ake Arts and Book Festival 2016 edition, which is the fourth, is no exception.
This year’s edition is themed “Beneath this Skin’’, and Distinguished Professor, renowned writer, and literary icon Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o will sit in conversation with Okey Ndibe about his life and works. He will also be talking about his latest book, Birth of a Dream Weaver.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE FESTIVAL: The festival will host nine book chats which feature 18 authors, of which they will include, Helon Habila, Laila Lalami, Teju Cole, Panashe Chigumadzi, Tendai Huchu, Chinelo Okparanta, Noviolet Bulawayo, Jowhor Ile, Sarah Ladipo Manyika, Odafe Atogun, Tade Thompson, and Toni Kan.
There will be 12 stimulating panel discussions that will engage both new and established voices in African literature. The discussions will focus on identity, race, gender, and mental health in fiction; also on the rise and fall of African economies; and it will also explore exciting genres such as erotica, horror fiction, and prison stories. There will be two art exhibitions, Laolu Senbanjo’s and Fatima Abubakar’s. Laolu Sebanjo’s, “Sacred Art of the Ori”, was featured on Beyonce’s latest album Lemonade. Fatima Abubakar captures the lives of the people of Borno State in a stunning series of photographs. An acoustic music concert with Brymo, Falana, Adunni and Nefertiti will also entertain the audience at the Festival.
The film for the festival is, Hissene Habre: A Chadian Tragedy, by Mahamat-Saleh Haroun’s which premiered at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. It is a documentary film which gives an account of the horror inflicted on the Chadian people during Hissen Habre’s rule. We will also premier our Festival of Short Films to celebrate this form of visual storytelling and the people who are fuelling its rapid growth in Nigeria. The short films to be screened are: A Mother’s Journey by Sade Adeniran,No Good Turn by Udoka Oyeka and Salt by Umar Turaki.
WORKSHOPS
Fiction Writing by Noviolet Bulawayo, Helon Habila and Sarah Ladipo Manyika,
Script-Writing by Inya Lawal and Victoria Thomas of the Story Republic
Graphic Short Stories by Sebastian Loerscher
POETRY: At the much-anticipated Palm Wine and Poetry Evening, attendees will enjoy outstanding performances by, poets like Titilope Sonuga, Lebo Mashile, Ogaga Ifowodo, Micheal Kelleher and Dike Chukwumerije while sipping on a calabash of deliciously fresh palm wine.
DRAMA AT AKE FESTIVAL::Baba Segi is back! In collaboration with Gbagyi Child Entertainment is bringing The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives. The unmissable play, directed by Femi Elufowoju Jr, will be the Drama at Ake Festival this year. Tickets for this event can be purchased HERE.
Ake Festival, one of the most thriving arts and book festival on the continent, is organised by the Book Buzz foundation with support from its valued partners, The EU, Government of Ogun State, Annoying Logo, Etisalat Nigeria and Park Inn, Abeokuta.
For more details on the Ake Arts and Book Festival 2016. CLICK HERE.
