I saw a write-up authored by Mr Makinde Adeniran, the ebullient President of the National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners NANTAP the umbrella body of theatre arts practitioners in the country, on the steep fees of the Wole Soyinka Centre, which we all used to know as the National Theatre
He was in the write-up echoing the sentiment of a whole sector that has apparently been left out as the refurbished National Theatre begins to pick up steam as a veritable player in the cultural space
His lamentations, although pitiable fall in the face of strict economics
So, in a unique public-private partnership, the Bankers Committee , working with the CBN, dropped N68b over four years to refurbish the old National Art Theatre.
The new edifice was now refitted with a 5,000-seater main auditorium and other such ancillary rooms
For the first time since it was built, The National Theatre became a very befitting infrastructure
Part of the objectives for this renovation was to further deepen employment in the space, push cultural revival, amongst others
This was not a charity or philanthropic gesture by the Bankers Committee but an interest-free loan with a 21-year repayment tenor
This, compared to usual loans, is more or less charity cos of the zero interest element and unusually long tenor
This tenor is even longer than some of the longest debt instruments on the market
The opportunity cost of these fundings to the Banks is massive.
Even if they just did Treasury Bills at, say, 20% over the period, the returns would not be something that you would hiss and walk past
So, as far as they are concerned, this was a massive contribution by the sector and expecting them to now listen to what Makinde and co are saying would, in their estimation, be them ‘taking the piss’.
They remain answerable to their shareholders and regulators, who would not take it as an excuse that they could not pay dividends or meet all the CBN-mandated liquidity ratios cos they had ‘tied’ down operating capital at the National Theatre
So they must recover that exposure within the tenor hence the operating agreement with the management, which ensures that the place is run profitably and efficiently, hence, and the N35m plus rental fee charged which shd by all intent and purposes shd exit them sweetly.
This runs counter to how the gatekeepers of the industry see the whole thing
For them, this fee has taken the edifice which embodies their heritage out of their reach, and this shows with the fact that since its opening, the only theatre show that has happened there was the Bolanle Austen Peters’ opening ceremony show, which was not a commercial outing as such
Other types of entertainment have taken place there, like the DeKunle and Dbanj shows, to mention a few
The gatekeepers of culture who pull in with a sense of deserving entitlement are coming from a history of government funding, subsidising the industry and as such cannot fathom this new reality where market forces drive engagement, hence their cry
What they do not know is that other such facilities are even more expensive than the National Theatre if you take it Naira for Naira
So the prime Tera Kulture at N6m , according to their website, with seating capacity of 400. is more expensive than the National Theatre at N35m with 5,000-seater.
The practitioners who are wailing are not trained to see this
Shell Hall of the Muson @ N1. 4m for 1,000 seater makes the National Theatre way more expensive and slso very far from Tera who by now is the most expensive viz a viz amount versus seating capacity
Then again, the Agip Recital at about N1m for 350seats is more expensive than the National Theatre
So does this justify the Naira and kobo look at culture by the funders of the new National Theatre and their backers in the government?
I think a balance should be sought. A balnce that would touch both sides of the spectrum
President Tinubu shot a salvo when he asked for an endowment fund to be set up to cater for the maintenance, and he promised to
Contribute
This, if well run can bring down the cost of rental as it would reduce the running cost of the office
The EFCC also chimed in by sending in recovered funds. I hear N200m was sent in for the purposes
But the far more sustainable push should be two pronged
The management should position the Main bowl for huge events like big international concerts, Corporate and Government events, and chart the market while allowing the smaller halls to go to cultural events at very good discounts. Thaty it even out cos the way I suspect the gatekeepers are going – free usage? It will not work
Secondly, the practitioners also look at their models and tweak them to this new reality
The biggest theatre houses run a maximum of 10 days and charge an average N5k to N50k per ticket and push sponsorship
If this model can be tweaked a little bit, then we can do the National Theatre
If we can pay Tera N6m for 400 people, why can’t we pay National Theatre N35m for 5,000 people?
It’s a novelty in marketing, increasing marketing budgets, blocking loopholes for leakages that practitioners take advantage of and pudhing there into marketing and driving trtrends
We did once. Instead of paying N450k for a 300-seater Bianca at Agip and doing three shows and getgetting 600 people, we paid N1. 3m for Shell and did one show with 1,000 people and saved a lot on other cost lines
The challenge is that the gatekeepers are not business people, and they won’t let their business managers run the numbers and design befitting business models that should see them design profitable productions instead.
Tthey would be yearning to Governmet to come to their ‘aid ‘, which is usually the war cry
This case is different as taxpayers didn’t furnish the place, and as such , the only way the Government can come to their aid to refund the N68b used on that transaction and then give out the Hall to practitioners for free so that we can now say we have a listening Government, ent and after 5 years, we are back to square one with a dead edifice
The coffee is ready, and I think the practitioners should begin to smell it ot; otherwise, ththey will cry themselves hoarse with nothing to show for it
Come and beat me
Thanks
Duke of Shomolu
Last modified: July 20, 2026
