Stage Acting Training: NATAP President Urges Actors Back to Theatre Roots

The National Association of Theatre Arts Practitioners has sounded an urgent alarm about the future of performance art in Nigeria. President Makinde Adeniran insists that stage acting training remains the bedrock of authentic craft development, warning that the industry risks losing its most effective talent incubator if practitioners continue abandoning live theatre for screen work alone. His message arrives at a critical moment when streaming platforms and film productions dominate headlines while theatre spaces struggle for attendance and funding across Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt.

Adeniran’s position reflects decades of observing how the country’s most celebrated performers — from veterans like Joke Silva and Olu Jacobs to contemporary stars — trace their technical foundation to boards they trod long before cameras rolled. The association’s leadership argues that the discipline, immediacy, and audience feedback loop unique to live performance cannot be replicated on set, where multiple takes and editing mask gaps in technique. This conviction drives their current advocacy campaign targeting young actors, training institutions, and cultural policymakers alike.

The State of Nigerian Theatre Today

Walk into the National Theatre in Iganmu on a typical weekend and you’ll witness a paradox: a magnificent edifice built for the 1977 Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC) that now hosts more corporate events and religious gatherings than dramatic productions. Similar stories unfold at the Terra Kulture arena in Victoria Island, the MUSON Centre in Onikan, and university theatre departments from Nsukka to Zaria. While Nollywood churns out thousands of films annually — making Nigeria the world’s second-largest film industry by volume — the live stage ecosystem that historically fed it talent has contracted dramatically.

Industry veterans point to multiple factors. Corporate sponsorship dried up after the 2016 recession and never fully recovered. Government funding for the arts remains negligible, with the Federal Ministry of Art, Culture and Creative Economy allocating less than 0.5% of its budget to theatre infrastructure. Meanwhile, young graduates from university theatre arts departments face a stark choice: pursue uncertain stage careers or pivot to film auditions and social media content creation where income, however irregular, materialises faster.

“We’re witnessing a generational rupture,” explains Professor Ahmed Yerima, playwright and former director-general of the National Theatre. “My students can quote Shakespeare and Soyinka brilliantly in seminars, but many have never performed a full-length play before a paying audience. That’s like training surgeons who’ve only watched operations on YouTube.”

Why Stage Acting Training Matters for Actors

The technical demands of live performance forge capabilities that screen work alone cannot develop. Projection without microphones teaches breath control and vocal placement. Sustaining a character through two hours without cuts builds emotional stamina and consistency. The immediate audience response — laughter, silence, gasps — provides real-time feedback that sharpens timing and truthfulness. Most critically, theatre demands ensemble awareness: actors must listen, react, and adjust collectively every night, a skill directly transferable to film sets where collaboration determines scene quality.

Consider the trajectory of Richard Mofe-Damijo, who honed his craft with the Benin-based Theatre Workshop before becoming a Nollywood icon. Or Bimbo Akintola, whose stage work with the University of Ibadan’s theatre department grounded her celebrated screen versatility. Even contemporary breakout stars like Timini Egbuson and Genoveva Umeh credit university and fringe theatre productions for their technical confidence. The pattern holds across generations: sustained excellence correlates with stage roots.

“On set, you can hide behind close-ups and ADR,” says veteran director Femi Odugbemi. “On stage, your whole instrument — voice, body, imagination — is exposed for two hours. That vulnerability forces a rigour that becomes muscle memory. When those actors later stand before a camera, they bring a depth that no amount of direction can manufacture.”

NATAP’s Call to Action

Against this backdrop, Adeniran’s leadership has launched a three-pronged strategy. First, a nationwide “Back to Stage” tour visiting university theatre departments, NYSC orientation camps, and creative hubs to demonstrate live performance’s value through workshops and showcase productions. Second, a partnership proposal to the Ministry of Art, Culture and Creative Economy for tax incentives targeting corporations that sponsor theatre seasons — modelled on South Africa’s successful Section 18A deductions that revitalised Johannesburg’s Market Theatre precinct.

Third, and perhaps most innovatively, NATAP is developing a certification framework that recognises stage credits equivalently to film credits for industry guild membership and award eligibility. Currently, the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCA) and Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) overwhelmingly recognise screen work, creating a perverse incentive structure. By formalising stage experience as professional currency, the association hopes to redirect aspiring actors toward theatre companies, repertory groups, and community productions.

“We’re not asking actors to choose between stage and screen,” Adeniran clarified during a recent press briefing in Lagos. “We’re saying the stage must be non-negotiable in your formation. Just as doctors complete housemanship regardless of their eventual specialisation, actors need their theatrical housemanship. The craft demands it.”

Challenges Facing Theatre Practitioners

Yet structural obstacles remain formidable. Venue costs in Lagos have skyrocketed — a weekend rental at Terra Kulture’s main auditorium now exceeds ₦1.2 million, excluding technical equipment and front-of-house staff. Independent producers routinely lose money on ambitious productions, relying on personal savings or crowdfunding. The few surviving repertory companies — Crown Troupe of Africa, Footprints of David, Thespian Family Theatre — operate on shoestring budgets, their actors often unpaid for months.

Training institutions compound the problem. University theatre arts curricula remain heavily theoretical, with practical production components often limited to one semester project. The National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO) and Centre for Black African Arts and Civilisation (CBAAC) run occasional workshops but lack sustained programming. Private academies like the Lufodo Academy of Performing Arts and Royal Arts Academy focus predominantly on screen acting, responding to market demand.

Audience development presents another hurdle. Middle-class Nigerians increasingly prefer cinema outings — where a ₦3,000 ticket guarantees air conditioning, comfortable seating, and a predictable two-hour experience — over theatre’s variable quality and logistics. The “Netflix generation” consumes stories on-demand, making the fixed schedule and communal ritual of live performance feel archaic. Theatre makers must now compete not just with Nollywood but with global streaming libraries accessible on smartphones.

Success Stories: Actors Who Started on Stage

The evidence supporting Adeniran’s position surrounds us. Taiwo Ajai-Lycett, at 80, still commands stages with a presence forged in 1960s British repertory theatre before she became a screen legend. Joke Silva’s magnetic stillness — whether playing a grieving mother in “The Widow” or a corrupt politician in “King of Boys” — traces directly to decades of classical stage work with the Lufodo troupe she co-founded with husband Olu Jacobs.

Younger exemplars abound. Efa Iwara’s searing portrayal in “Breath of Life” (2023) drew on years with the Crown Troupe, where he learned to hold silence as powerfully as dialogue. Jemima Osunde’s comedic timing in “New Money” and “Sugar Rush” sharpened through fringe festival performances at the Lagos Theatre Festival. Even musicians crossing into acting — like Falz and Adekunle Gold — cite campus theatre and church drama ministries as their first acting laboratories.

Internationally, the pattern repeats. Lupita Nyong’o (Yale School of Drama), Danai Gurira (playwright-performer with Tony nominations), and John Boyega (London’s National Youth Theatre) all credit stage foundations for their screen breakthroughs. The global industry increasingly recognises theatre training as a quality marker — casting directors for major streaming productions routinely ask: “What stage work have they done?”

The Way Forward for Nigerian Theatre

Revitalising the ecosystem requires coordinated action across sectors. The Ministry of Art, Culture and Creative Economy must move beyond ceremonial pronouncements to implement the Creative Industry Financing Initiative promised in 2023, earmarking specific funds for theatre infrastructure and touring grants. State governments should follow Lagos State’s example of subsidising venue costs for qualifying productions at the Glover Memorial Hall and Eko Convention Centre.

Corporate Nigeria needs to view theatre sponsorship as brand-building investment, not charity. MTN’s support of the Lagos Theatre Festival and Sterling Bank’s partnership with the Ake Arts and Book Festival demonstrate measurable returns in youth engagement and cultural credibility. More companies should adopt theatre seasons, securing naming rights and employee engagement programmes in exchange for sustained funding.

Training institutions must overhaul curricula. Mandatory full-length productions each semester, industry placements with professional companies, and business-of-the-arts modules would produce graduates ready for the profession’s realities. The National Universities Commission (NUC) should enforce these standards during accreditation visits, rather than accepting paper compliance.

Finally, practitioners themselves must innovate. Site-specific theatre in markets, parks, and historic buildings — as pioneered by the Lagos Street Theatre Festival — reaches audiences who never enter conventional venues. Digital livestreaming of productions, with paid access, creates revenue streams beyond physical seating capacity. Collaborations with musicians, dancers, and visual artists generate hybrid forms that attract younger, crossover audiences.

“Theatre isn’t a museum piece,” insists Adeniran. “It’s a living laboratory where the human condition gets examined in real time, with real stakes. Every great film industry — Hollywood, Bollywood, the British system — rests on a thriving theatre substrate. Nigeria cannot be the exception. Our actors deserve the rigour. Our stories deserve the depth. Our audiences deserve the magic that only happens when performers and witnesses share breath in the same room.”

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does NATAP believe stage acting training is essential for Nigerian actors?

NATAP argues that live theatre develops technical discipline, emotional stamina, ensemble awareness, and real-time audience responsiveness that cannot be replicated in screen acting. These foundational skills translate directly to stronger, more versatile screen performances.

What specific initiatives has NATAP launched to address theatre’s decline?

NATAP has launched a nationwide “Back to Stage” tour for workshops and showcases, proposed tax incentives for corporate theatre sponsorship to the Ministry of Art, Culture and Creative Economy, and is developing a certification framework that values stage credits equally with film credits for industry recognition.

How can young Nigerian actors access stage acting training opportunities today?

Aspiring actors can join university theatre productions, community theatre groups like Crown Troupe of Africa or Footprints of David, attend workshops at venues like Terra Kulture and Lufodo Academy, and participate in festivals such as the Lagos Theatre Festival and Ake Arts and Book Festival fringe programmes.

Source: Punch Newspapers

Related Reading

• Nigerian Army Frees 11 Kidnapped Victims in Kebbi – a 2026 Success Story
• Patrick Stewart Screen Presence: from Picard to Xavier in Film
• Safaricom’s 2026 Fraud Dismissals Signal a New Era of Telecom Integrity