“The Eclipse Guinness World Record Theatrethon” recently concluded, led by Graciano Enwerem alongside talented performers like The Gift Chikere, Doubra Agwana, and Tamara Dogubo, was an extraordinary accomplishment in Nigerian performance art. This team set out to achieve a remarkable goal: 170 hours of nonstop theatrical performance (just over a week), aiming to set a new world record in theatre performance. Beyond their ambition to earn global recognition, this event sought to recognize the dedication it takes to achieve such an extraordinary feat. Their performance included dramatic plays enriched with dance and poetry, blending elements to create a dynamic experience. With its successful conclusion, the Theatrethon stands as a testament to their commitment to art and is worthy of the recognition it seeks.

When I first heard of the Theatrethon, the first thing that came to mind was gratitude to God but also some apprehension about the scale of the task I thought was too enormous for the team to accomplish. Let me tell you why this was so. In putting theatre shows together, those that are very experienced with the organizations of such events understand the difficulty of the commitment that goes into it. From memorizing scripts and performing them to acquiring and managing props, there are countless logistical challenges. It is no mean feat, I must confess. Those who observe and simply watch acts on stage, may never come to fully appreciate the herculean task behind the success or failure of a stage production. Some do understand the sacrifices made but would only applaud the performances when it finally comes to a successful end.

However, beyond the expectations of seeing a practical regular dramatic representation of reality on stage, I knew the bard pioneering this production and I felt strongly beyond all reasonable doubts that he was very capable. Nonetheless, my uncertainty sat on the distance he planned to cover. Just imagine performing with few breaks for one week plus. And have you tried dancing or talking with much exhaustion for thirty minutes non-stop? Just do the maths so you would know what it takes physiologically and psychologically to put on a good show.

If you have not yet been introduced, Graciano is an eclectic human being. A performance poet that appears natural with his style and energy no matter where he stands to perform. Let’s say that he is the kind that keeps performance of poetry both poetic and true to aesthetics. He makes poetry a beautiful motion picture. Images appear clear and colorful when he stands to perform. Some might find him too enterprising but to others he is quite interesting. In all, Gracianno is a performance poet that wins you over with every fiber of resources available to him to make you love his craft. With that said, it shows that I had great expectations of the Theatrethon and the record he was trying to break. In my mind, it was going to be a situation of every aspect of theatre, supporting the art of spoken word poetry for that long, for the first time in contemporary times in Nigerian history.

For a long time, spoken word poetry has primarily served as an adjunct act in events and ceremonies, gaining popularity in that role. With limited time frames, poets are often left to showcase their skills in too brief a moment, conjuring words like magicians to entertain an audience that expects the best within a short performance. If they don’t impress quickly, they risk being scarcely applauded off stage. This highlights the need for longer poetry shows, which is what I expected from the Theatrethon, even though its intentions were clear. In my view, spoken word poetry deserves more airtime, and this event was a perfect opportunity to achieve that.

When the time finally came, I watched out for the progress of the show through his WhatsApp status and every update he dropped. First of all, it was disappointing to find out that this didn’t get the publicity the Cookathons got. Maybe it is because of our people’s taste in selecting what must trend on social media or the fact that we don’t really appreciate true art.

It was in the quest to satisfy my expectations that I discovered that Graciano also ventures well in core theatre and dramatic arts, efficiently as well. Nonetheless, what met me was both disappointment and also amazement. Disappointment because I hoped to see poetry at the heart of the production, as I have stated, with supporting acts from other branches of theatre, including choreography, fine & applied arts, music, and drama. I wanted to see poetry stretch farther than has ever been stretched and, in the hands of Gracianno, I expected everything beautiful with the class you would see him bring to a five-minute performance. For what made me amazed, I saw commitment in a light that I have rarely seen on this path of global civilization. For a Nigerian to engage in such a venture either of these two things could motivate them. One is if you are paying well or the other is a passion for true art and their longing to be a part of it. I strongly believe the latter is the case. Their work represents a pure commitment to art and its beauty. I believe that the late great oral literary scholar and author, Professor Isidore Okpewho, would have been proud to see such an act of service to the African Performance community. This keeps the culture alive and we must continue to encourage such ventures and events.

Far from the Festivals and competitions we have organized, the culture of performance is essential to the development and integration of the African communities and it also has elements that contribute to the improvement of the human condition. This is true art and Graciano reawakens the fact that we can go the extra mile with our artistic expression, not necessarily for the acceptance or recognition of any international organization, but for the continuance and appreciation of what was very cultural and valuable to us as a continent.

Going back to my earlier expectations, I still hope to see that a poetry event will evolve one day where poetry, with the help of theatre, can go beyond Dike’s Made in Nigeria Poetry and Theatre Production of two hours. Something more like the performance of the amazing Ijaw epic of Ozidi Saga performed by Okabou Ojobolou at the University of Ibadan for about a week. Yes! One beautiful week of spectacular art and organized performance.

Much kudos goes to Gracianno and the team who helped make the experience worthwhile. This, for me, marks the beginning of greater exploits in performance, especially spoken word poetry in the Nigerian creative milieu. We hope this will inspire others to reinvent and sustain what I believe is cultural for us and what was a part of our common experience in pre-colonial Africa.

We hope the Guinness World Records recognizes this sacrifice and commitment to performance art in Africa.