By Our Correspondent
The Society of Nigeria Theatre Artists (SONTA), the foremost professional and academic body for theatre and performing arts practitioners in Nigeria, has conferred its prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award on Professor Taofiq Olaide Nasir, a distinguished don at the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), Ekiti State at its just concluded 40th annual conference held on 19th of August at Lead City University, Ibadan.
The award recognises Professor Nasir’s over two decades-long contributions to theatre scholarship, applied drama, and the development of dramatherapy as an academic and clinical discipline in Nigeria and across Africa.
Professor Nasir: A Trailblazer in Dramatherapy
Professor Nasir holds the distinction of being the first professor of dramatherapy in Africa, a milestone that places him at the forefront of a still-emerging field on the continent. His scholarship has focused heavily on the therapeutic uses of drama applying theatre techniques to address issues such as trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder, child sexual abuse recovery, and drug abuse rehabilitation, among other social and psychological challenges.
He has consistently advocated for the formal inclusion of drama therapy as a course of study in Nigerian tertiary institutions, noting the shortage of specialists in the field despite its growing relevance to mental health and social intervention in the country.
Academic and Professional Career
A don in the Department of Theatre and Media Arts at FUOYE, Professor Nasir is an alumnus of the University of Ibadan and Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife; two of Nigeria’s leading centres for theatre arts education. Beyond the classroom, he is a playwright, director, and theatre technologist whose body of work includes titles addressing themes of abuse, drug trafficking, and social justice.
His leadership record in the profession is extensive. He has served as a former Chairman of the National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners (NANTAP) Oyo State chapter, held office as Public Relations Officer of the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) Ekiti state chapter, and is a founding member of the Association of African Dramatherapists. He is also a longstanding member of SONTA, the very body that has now honoured him.
Rotary and Community Service
Beyond academia, Professor Nasir is an active Rotarian, reflecting a career that has extended beyond scholarship into community service and civic engagement; values that colleagues say are woven into his broader philosophy of using the arts for social good.
Recognition from Peers
SONTA’s Lifetime Achievement Award is one of the highest honours the organisation bestows, reserved for practitioners and scholars whose careers have left a lasting imprint on Nigerian theatre. Past recipients have included prominent names in Nigerian theatre scholarship, underscoring the significance of Professor Nasir’s inclusion in that circle.
Colleagues within the theatre community have described the recognition as a fitting tribute to a scholar who has spent much of his career pushing the boundaries of what drama can achieve, not merely as entertainment, but as a tool for healing, advocacy, and social transformation.
As Nigerian theatre continues to expand its academic and applied frontiers, Professor Nasir’s recognition by SONTA serves as both a celebration of his individual achievements and an endorsement of dramatherapy’s growing place within the country’s cultural and educational institutions.
