Wale Ogunyemi
From Wikipedia
Wale Ogunyemi
Ogunyemi
Obaluaye
Wale Ogunyemi (1972), Obaluaye. Ibadan, Nigeria: University Press Limited ISBN 978 249106 3.
Iwe ere ori-itage ni OBALUAYE. O da le ori oba kan ti o gba esin ajeji tan ti ko fe se esin ibile mo. Igba tio bere sii ri wahala ni o ronupiwada. Ifaara lori iwe naa ni ede Geesi ni o wa ni isale yii.
INTRODUCTION
OBALUAYE is a Yoruba music-drama about religious syncretism.
The Baale of a Yoruba town has brought the curse of Obaluaye, otherwise known as Sanponna, on his town through his refusal to worship orisa. The Baale is a Christian convert who would have nothing to do with orisa. This results in a decline of orisa worship in the town. Obaluaye is angered and summons the help of his fellow gods in inflicting punishment on the town. The punishment, of course, is a small-pox epidemic which quickly spreads round the town affecting both the vaccinated and unvaccinated.
The Baale himself soon catches the disease and dies. The Ifa priest is summoned; and after performing a ritual, he succeeds in awakening the dead Baale. The brief trip to the land of death seems to finally vonvince the Baale that a man in his position should not neglect his own traditional orisa even if he embraces Christianity.
OBALUAYE is based on the style of music-drama, popularly known as folk opera, which has been developed by Kola Ogunmola and Duro Ladipo, among others. The term ‘music-drama’ should not, however, be understood to mean that music and drama are the prome elements and that the others artistic elements merely support the music and the drama. In fact, what is attempted in OBALUAYE is a five-dimensional presentation, consisting of music, dance, drama, design and lighting, in which these elements are given equal emphasis