Culture
edifice in darkness over N20m electricity debt
For the most
part of 30 years in which Nigeria’s foremost culture edifice, National Theatre,
has been in comatose, government has lost over N300 billion.
The
5,000-capacity main bowl has not been put to use since 1992 due to structural
errors. The other halls run skeletal services at best, with most of them as
non-cultural or artistic events. Organisers of artistic events have since
shifted to other well-maintained venues.
The
government has continued to incur overhead costs in terms of salaries of staff
of both the National Troupe of Nigeria and the National Theatre. “A source
close to the operations at the facility put the overhead expenses on the
National Theatre within the last one year (although not regular) at N18 million
monthly, and N4 million for National Troupe of Nigeria. This has, however,
stopped to be regular in the last two years, but whenever it comes, the two establishments
get that much,” the source disclosed.
In spite of
the monthly allocations and monies collected from the few event organisers and
patrons, the edifice has been in total darkness for most part of 2017. It is
currently experiencing a blackout because it owes N20 million electricity
supply debts.
Notable
filmmaker, Chief Eddie Ugbomah, has accused managers of the theatre of
incompetence for running down the prime venue where he screened his celluloid
films alongside Chief Herbert Ogunde and Dr. Ola Balogun in the 1980s and early
1990s.
The main
bowl, Ugbomah disclosed, has lost close to N90 billion in about 30 years while
the other halls also lost another N200 billion in 18 years. He based his
estimates on what he and the late Yoruba film doyen, Ogunde, and Balogun, used
to rake in at most weekends for showing their celluloid films. He said while
Ogunde, whose Yoruba language films were very popular, made about N5 million
most weekends, he (Ugbomah) made about N3 million with his English films like
The Death of a Black President, Oyenusi and Black Gold.
Ugbomah
noted that the theatre has more halls than any event centre in the country and
if well managed, revenues from them could be used to sustain it with reserves
sent to government’s coffers.
“There is
the exhibition hall, two cinema halls, the banquet hall, the VIP hall, and the
5,000-seater main bowl,” Ugbomah said. “No other venue in Nigeria has this
capacity. The main bowl also has a revolving stage, which is rare to come by in
most event centres, and this stage has not been used in the past 30 years.
Imagine how much money government would be making if 5,000 people pay at least
N500 to watch a film or play that would be shown thrice or four times a day?”
Another
filmmaker and first president of National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts
Practitioners (NANTAP), Mr. Mahmoud Ali-Balogun (producer of Tangle with Me),
spoke in agreement with Ugbomah, but said the financial loss at the National
Theatre was unquantifiable given the resurgence in the cinema-going tradition
in the past few years in the country.
Mo Abudu’s
The Wedding Party grossed N200 million in just 16 days of four weekends in box
office earnings in cinema halls that seat only 100 people at a time. Also, AY’s
(Ayo Makun) A Trip to Jamaica earned N168 million in less than four weekends.
The two cinema halls at the National Theatre seat well over 500 people each at
the same time, the exhibition hall well over 800 people.
Ali-Balogun
spoke further: “Earnings from cinemas are just one aspect of what can be done
with the National Theatre. If you look at what is being done at Terra Kulture,
FilmOne House, Silverbird Galleria, and Genesis in terms of raising revenues, I
will say National Theatre’s loss is too much, too unquantifiable, and it’s a
shame. The National Theatre is like a cultural headquarters. It is a place
where you can have exhibitions like fine arts, film shows like cinemas, plays
performed and corporate AGMs. Do you know the kind of affinity artists have for
that place? But it’s being left fallow right now. It’s just unfortunate. I believe
that things have to change. What is responsible for this I don’t know, but I
know government is making efforts to make it work.”
Ali-Balogun
who said he was not pointing fingers, insisted that something was wrong
somewhere: “Why are our national monuments so cursed in terms of functionality?
Look at the National Stadiums in Lagos and Abuja, It’s unfortunate. I can’t put
a finger to what the exact losses are, but it is huge. It’s not just revenue
loss, but employment. When the place is functioning, it’s not just the ministry
people I’m talking about. I’m talking about all categories of artists, who
should be working there; it was our workplace in those days.”
The General
Manager of Terra Kulture, Mr. Joseph Umoibom, noted a lot of cultural events
like the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA), held last Sunday, could have been
staged at the theatre but for its poor management. Eko Hotel hosted AFRIMA
instead. Terra Kulture Arena Theatre, which opened as an interventionist
theatre space last year, was largely in response to the National Theatre’s
continuing failing as Nigeria’s cultural hotspot.
“Eko Hotel
charges N8million to N10 million a day,” Umoibom noted. “Even if National
Theatre is a little cheaper, it can’t charge less than N5 million per day. In
other words, the National Theatre can’t make less than N20 million on a
weekend. A lot of other earnings can be made on the sides from food vending
around the theatre and the car park. So, you really can’t quantify what is
being lost at the theatre. People are being paid for doing nothing in that
place, when they are sitting on money.”
Guardian Nigeria
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