Renowned Nobel Prize winner Wole Soyinka has opened up about his decision to embrace the renaming of Lagos’s National Theatre in his honor, despite his earlier reservations about dedicating public landmarks to individuals.
President Bola Tinubu recently rechristened the iconic National Theatre in Iganmu, Lagos, as the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and the Creative Arts, marking a significant cultural milestone.
During the ceremony celebrating the theatre’s restoration and reopening, Soyinka candidly addressed his previous stance against the personalization of public spaces in Nigeria. He acknowledged, “I have often criticized the trend of naming public edifices and thoroughfares after individuals, believing many do not truly deserve such recognition. Yet here I am, witnessing my own name adorning a public monument, which felt somewhat contradictory.”
He expressed mixed emotions about the honor, noting, “I have been vocal about opposing the monopolization of public monuments by past leaders, where it seems nearly every structure bears their name. If I were to be humble, I’d estimate that only about a quarter of these dedications are genuinely merited.”
Reflecting on Nigeria’s theatrical heritage and figures like Hubert Ogunde and Adam Fiberesima, Soyinka concluded that sometimes, “someone must bear the responsibility.”
He reminisced about the National Theatre’s origins, constructed during a military government, and its pivotal role during the 1977 Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC ’77). Soyinka lamented the venue’s deterioration over time, once describing it as beyond repair and comparable to a neglected slum.
“Another factor influencing my acceptance is nostalgia,” he shared. “This building was initially erected under military rule and served as the heart of FESTAC ’77. The current hall is vastly different from what it was back then.”
He recalled the theatre’s dilapidated state during Lagos’s 50th anniversary celebrations when it was considered as a potential event hub. “When the governor and his team returned for a reassessment, I told them to proceed without me. I even half-jokingly suggested hiring someone to demolish it secretly because it was beyond saving-it was more like a slum than a cultural landmark.”
However, Soyinka praised the recent renovations, concluding, “If admitting one’s previous criticisms leads to such a remarkable outcome, then I gladly eat my words.”
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