The 16th edition of the annual Lagos Book and Art Festival (LABAF) dedicated to Wole Soyinka at 80 holds from November 14 to 16 with the theme, ‘Freedom and the Word’.
Committee for Relevant Art (CORA), which organises the event, however, has pre-festival events beginning as early as November 10 with a Book Trek at the British Council office in Ikoyi, Lagos.
To begin at 4pm, the pre-festival will feature young readers and book lovers who will discuss some of the books of the festival and, the organisers said, have literary fun.
Highpoint of the event will be the presentation of the work of finalists of the Book Review contest for secondary school students of Ejigbo Local Government Area, Lagos State.
On Thursday, November 13, from 10am to 5pm at Freedom Park, Lagos, the main venue for this year’s edition, there will be a workshop with the theme, ‘Fantasy Vs. Reality: Writing for Young Adults’. It is in partnership with British Council.
On the same day, the fourth edition of the Publishers’ Forum that precedes the festival will take place from 10am to 4pm, this time in partnership with Goethe-Institut, Nigeria, at the German cultural institution’s office, City Hall, Lagos Island. The theme is ‘The emerging market pathways for books’.
The forum will interrogate how publishers can profit from the intersection of the e-book phenomenon and the old order print publishing.
The main festival, which theme is inspired by the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, 20th Anniversary of the South African Democracy and 15th anniversary of Nigeria’s Fourth Republic, will begin on November 14.
Except for the performance poetry workshop in partnership with the British Council from 10am to 5pm, the first day of the festival will be for events around Professor Wole Soyinka, which will see him mentor children from 11am in ‘The Book in my Life’ segment of the festival.
Footprints of David will stage Childe International directed by Seun Awobajo/Adefila thereafter, while the Festival Colloquium will take place at 1pm in the Kongi Harvest’s Art Gallery of the former colonial prison. The theme is ‘Soyinka: Freedom and Nation Building’. Professor Biodun Jeyifo will deliver the keynote address.
A panel discussion around the theme will take place at 2pm in the same venue featuring: The Man Died, Ake, Ibadan, Isara, and You Must Set Forth at Dawn. The panel will be moderated by the Executive Director of TheNews magazine, Kunle Ajibade.
There will also be public presentation/launch of new reprints of Ake, The Man Died and Ibadan: The Penkelemesi Years by BookCraft Publishers.
The Festival Symposium will start from 4pm.
A tribute, ‘Homage to the Poet’ is by 7pm at the Amphi Theatre of the park, and drama of Soyinka’s new play, Alapata Apata, will be staged by Crown Troupe of Africa at the main stage at 8pm.
There will colloquium on November 15 and the festival party will begin at 8pm. Curtain falls on the second day with a Jazz and Highlife Night.
To be celebrated at the party are the literary scholar, Ayo Banjo at 80; the filmmaker, Adegboyega Arulogun at 80; the sculptor/conceptual artist, El Anatsui at 70; the columnist and essayist, Olatunji Dare at 70; and the dramatist, journalist, Ben Tomoloju at 60.
The last day will begin with a seminar with the theme, ‘Book and the Youth Empowerment’ from noon to 1.30pm. And there will be a book presentation, Dis Fela Sef, by veteran art journalist and music critic, Benson Idonije, and published by Festac Books.
The rest of the day will feature the Art Stampede at 4pm which dwells on ‘A slice of Nigeria’s Democratic struggle’, the screening of The Supreme Price, a feature length documentary film by Joanna Lipper that traces the pro-democracy movement in Nigeria.
This segment is produced in partnership with iREP International Documentary Film Forum.
The Poetry Slam at 7pm on the main stage of the park with the theme ‘100,000 Poets and Musicians for Change’ will close the festival. Of course, the Green Festival featuring children for the three days will take place alongside the festival.