The State Visit by Niyi Osundare


The State Visit
Title : The State Visit
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 9780390588
ISBN-10 : 9789780390587
Language : English
Format Type : Paperback
Number of Pages : 68
Publication : First published September 5, 2000

A recently published play from the prolific Nigerian poet, dramatist and literary critic, which testifies to the author's commitment to socially relevant art and artistic activism for which he is justifiably renowned. The play tells the story of Yankeland, an imaginary African country, where the country's natural and donated wealth is in the hands of a few corrupt rulers in cahoots with the American military. The powerful prey on the exploited masses, whilst upholding a facade of god-fearing morality. The play is written in the style of street theatre and producs a biting and dramatic satire on political authoritarianism and ignorance, which the author holds responsible for the backwardness of many African countries.The play does however show that such oppression is being challenged; and that the natural inclination of human beings is towards resistance and solidarity, for which Osundare's characters demonstrate great capacity.The courage, unambiguous criticism and optimism in the future are reflected in the performance history of the play itself, which was first staged at the Arts Theatre at the University of Ibadan in 1997, during the time of one of Nigeria's most repressive military dictatorships.

The State Visit Reviews

  • Phillip

    This play is a satire of corruption and political repression in Nigeria. It contrasts the massive consumption of resources by the elites with the poverty and destitution of the masses, and shows how that poverty is partially maintained through corruption as the Head (dictatorial ruler) drains an international relief fund meant to buy food to relieve a famine, and he uses the money to host a lavish reception of a neighboring head of state--including the Head buying himself expensive new clothes, commissioning paintings, etc.

    Alongside this, there is repression of anything even resembling dissent. The most overt examples are when the first Finance Minister refuses to go along with the scheme to use the food money for the reception and when the painter refuses to paint the Head's portrait and instead goes on an inspired, apocalyptic rant about tyranny. The painter is immediately taken away to be executed, but the Head and the Cabinet decide that the Finance Minister should be killed quietly and his death made to look like an accident.

    In contrast to this, we have the beggars of Act II, who stand up to the policeman who tries to clear them away. The beggars brilliantly and poetically proclaim themselves the conscience of the country whose existence reveals the faults and flaws of the nation. And in Act IV, there is a popular rally against the government, which erupts in anger before the police fire into the crowd.

    The other element of resistance is the Narrator, who opens and closes the play. The Narrator is a Brechtian figure who directly announces the the political stakes of the play, telling us at the beginning that the bountiful land (implicitly Nigeria, but in the play it's the fictional land of Yanke) has been brought low by corruption and tyranny. And at the end of the play, after the rally and police shooting members of the crowd, the Narrator tells the crowd that this isn't the end of the resistance to tyranny, but just the beginning. The ending is, therefore, an exhortation for the audience to resist the dictatorship of Sani Abacha, who ruled Nigeria when this play premiered in 1997.

    https://youtu.be/wfNBPcW5cqE

  • Abuh Monday Eneojo

    If you are looking for a book that gives a good account of the effects of Nigerian politics this is the right book. It is play that centers on the bad and corrupt leaders.