Oxford is set to stage the city’s first African production created by students when Death and the King’s Horseman opens at Magdalen College later this month.
The play, written by Nobel Prize-winning author Professor Wole Soyinka, will run at the college’s Grove Auditorium from November 25 to 28.
Likehearted Productions is staging the work with the Africa Oxford Initiative (AfOx) and the Oxford Nigerian Society.
Professor Soyinka, who received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1986 and became the first African writer to receive the honour, is expected to attend the Oxford premiere.
Director Ifeoluwa Ayeni said the staging combines poetry, ritual and tragedy.
Music, choral performance and drums have been placed at its centre to convey the significance of Elesin’s decision.
The story is set in Oyo, Nigeria, during the Second World War.
Its central character, Elesin Oba, serves as the king’s horseman and is required by Yoruba tradition to accompany a deceased monarch into the afterlife.
Before doing so, he asks for a final earthly pleasure in the form of a young bride.
British District Officer Simon Pilkings becomes involved in the situation at the same time as Elesin’s son, Olunde, returns from medical studies in England.
The drama draws on events that occurred in Oyo in 1946.
Professor Soyinka has characterised it as more than a straightforward cultural clash, describing it instead as a metaphysical tragedy concerned with relationships among the living, the dead and the unborn.
Oxford production producer Dr Kapil Narain said African stories have limited representation on Oxford stages.
Bringing Soyinka’s work to the city will introduce audiences both to an established play and to those meeting it for the first time.
The production includes costumes made in Nigeria, a complete chorus, live music and Yoruba talking drums.
The instruments reproduce patterns found in spoken Yoruba and carry messages between characters throughout the town.
Performances are scheduled for 7.30pm from Wednesday, November 25 until Saturday, November 28.
A further performance at 2.30pm will take place on November 28.
The running time is approximately 90 minutes without an interval, and the material addresses death, ritual suicide and the impact of colonialism.
Admission costs £20, while students can purchase tickets for £15.
Ticket availability and purchasing details are available at kingshorseman.co.uk.
Professor Soyinka was born in Abeokuta, Nigeria, in 1934.
He is widely regarded as one of Africa’s most influential literary figures.
His awards include the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature, the Royal Society of Literature’s Benson Medal in 1990, the Anisfield-Wolf Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013 and a Special Prize from the Europe Theatre Prize in 2017.