Eguria

HUBERT OGUNDE – WHO IS HE? Hubert Ogunde was born in 1916 in the village of Ososa four miles from ijebu-Ode in western state of Nigeria. He worked as a teacher before joining the Nigeria Police Force. He later left the police force to join the theatre world with his first play titled: “THE GARDEN OF EDEN” and later followed by “THE THRONE OF GOD” in 1944. These plays launched him into active theatrical productions. His play The Garden of Eden and The Throne of God were commissioned by the church of the Lord Cherubim and Seraphim based in Lagos Nigeria. The performance was in aid of the church building fund but later grew into a big theatrical venture for him. The huge success of the foregoing productions spurred Ogunde on to writing more operas until he decided to leave, quite unlike his contemporaries, his amateur status as an artist and turn professional. By this act Ogunde began the rise of modern professional theatre in Nigeria: a movement in which he remains the supreme art...