Femi Elufowoju Jr.

Femi Elufowoju Jr. (/ˈfɛmi ɛˌlʊfəˈwɒdʒuː/ FEM-ee eh-LUU-fə-WOJ-oo;^[1] born 31 October 1962) is a British Nigerian actor, performer, and director. After Alton Kumalo's Temba Theatre Company, he is the second theatre director of African descent to establish a national touring company in the UK.^[2][3] Elufowoju's stage work has been seen across most key flagship theatres in the UK, and has collaborated extensively with notable creatives within the film, television and radio sectors.

Early life and education[]

Elufowoju was born on 31 October 1962 in Hammersmith, London, to Nigerian parents from Ile-Ife.^[4] He attended Copenhagen Primary & Junior School, Islington, from 1967 to 1974, before moving to Nigeria. He attended Sacred Heart Primary School, Ring Road, Ibadan, in 1975, and Christ's School, Ado Ekiti (1975–80), before going to the Oyo State College of Arts and Science in 1980.^[5]

He read Law at the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) but was advised to withdraw in 1985 just before returning to the UK. Then he attended North London College, where he received a Certificate in Community Theatre. In 1990, he obtained a bachelor's degree in Dramatic Arts from Bretton Hall, Leeds University's affiliated drama training institute. between 2010 and 2012, Elufowoju took a career break to attend South Bank University and concentrate on a postgraduate degree in Education.

Theatre[]

In the summer of 1995, Mehmet Ergen invited Elufowoju to headline a season of African plays at the Southwark Playhouse. The play which later turned out to be the young director's debut production was Mauritian author San Cassimally's Acquisitive Case.^[6] The production led to Elufowoju winning a Regional Theatre Young Director bursary from Channel 4 and the Cameron Mackintosh Foundation to train as a theatre director under Phiip Hedley at the Theatre Royal Stratford East. The following year, after a ground-breaking tour of Sweden with his second play Tickets and Ties: The African Tale billed as "the biggest and most ambitious West African show",^[7] he established Tiata Fahodzi, a national touring theatre company, its core mission statement being to demonstrate the African experience on the British stage. He artistically led the company for 13 years, directing and presenting over 30 plays, including his productions of Ola Rotimi's The Gods Are Not to Blame^[8] and Oladipo Agboluaje's Iya-Ile: The First Wife ^[9] (nominated for the Olivier Award).^[10][2] During the same period, Elufowoju served as an Associate directing plays at the Almeida Theatre, Royal Court Theatre, West Yorkshire Playhouse, and the New Wolsey Theatre in Ipswich.

In 2016, he directed Bonnie Greer's The Hotel Cerise,^[11] as well as the British premiere of Blues for an Alabama Sky by American playwright Pearl Cleage at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.^[12]

In 2019, he directed Bim Adewunmi's Hoard, written for BBC Arts and Avalon as part of an initiative to encourage writers from genres outside of theatre to write for the stage.^[13]

His interpretation of The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, described as a "radical new reimagining",^[14] was produced in May 2019 for Watford Palace Theatre and Arcola Theatre.^[15][16]

For Fuel Theatre, Elufowoju directed Inua Ellams’ adaptation of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's The Little Prince in the spring of 2020.^[17] It previewed in London, Manchester and Coventry and was to have played at the 2020 Edinburgh International Festival, before touring to Tempe in Arizona.

Radio[]

In 2010, he commenced a freelance career with the BBC, producing and directing several dramas for BBC Radio 3 and BBC Radio 4, including Rex Obano's Burned to Nothing,^[18] Sam Soko's The New Bwana,^[19] Chinonyeram Odimba's Eve^[20] and the seminal Stages of Independence for BBC World Service, a celebration of 50 years of African drama throwing a spotlight on 50 years of Africa's Independence.^[21] He returns to the BBC this summer to direct Rex Obano's City College for Radio 3.

Directing film[]

As part of Manchester's Halle Orchestra 2021 spring season, Sir Mark Elder invited Annabel Arden and Elufowoju to direct a staged performance of Stravinsky's 1918 masterpiece The Soldier's Tale.^[22] Read, played, and danced by three actors, a dancer and seven instrumentalists. The film marked Elufowoju's debut as a film director.

Opera[]

In January 2022, Elufowoju will be making his opera debut as a director with Giuseppe Verdi's Rigoletto^[23] for Opera North in Leeds. The production will feature Eric Greene, Roman Arndt, Jasmine Habersham, and Sir Willard White. This will be followed by a new production for Theater St Gallen in Switzerland, of the 1780 opera L'amant anonyme (The Anonymous Lover) based on the life and music of relatively unknown 18th-century classical composer Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges.

The Elufowoju Jr Ensemble[]

In 2015, Thomas Kell and Elufowoju set up The Elufowoju Jr Ensemble^[24] with a view to creating exceptional world-class African theatre with imaginative flair for the international stage.

After a brief workshop presentation of a stage adaptation of Lola Shoneyin's The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives with an exclusive British-based cast, Elufowoju in the summer of 2018 directed a full co-production with the Arcola Theatre,^[25] winning Best Director Award (Offie 2019) for an Off West-End Production. The production was noted for being the highest grossing box-office show in the entire 20-year history of the Arcola. In the same year, the production returned to Nigeria under the aegis of Sourmash Stories Productions (Teniola Olatoni Ojigbede) as the theatre segment for Ake Festival 2018. The BBC subsequently commissioned Elufowoju to adapt a new dramatization for Radio 3, which was broadcast in November 2019.^[26]

54.60 Africa[]

In 2013, Elufowoju embarked on a mission of a lifetime: to visit all 54 countries in Africa. The project, titled "54.60 Africa",^[27] culminates in 2022 in an ensemble theatrical piece chronicling the odyssey of his travels through the continent.

Performance in film and television[]

Elufowoju has made notable television appearances, including the BBC comedy series Little Miss Jocelyn, serial dramas Moses Jones, Wire in the Blood, Borgen and Silent Witness. His film credits include The Legend of 1900 (1998) for Italian director Giuseppe Tornatore, Hollywood franchise Mechanic: Resurrection (2016), The Saint (2017) Enterprice (2018), two seasons of Sex Education and Year of the Rabbit (2019). The forthcoming release of The Princess Switch 3 with Vanessa Hudgens will feature Elufowoju playing Vatican's Cardinal Aked Amoah.^[28]

Affiliated work in the arts[]

In 2003, he was appointed Segment Director facilitating the Commonwealth Parade (The Mall Pageant) on the occasion of the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.^[29] In 2019, Clarence House on behalf of the Duchess of Cornwall invited Elufowoju to be one of the Final Panel Judges for The Queen's 2019 Commonwealth Essay Competition.^[30]

Nigeria[]

Elufowoju has spent periods returning to his ancestral home Nigeria, building alliances with notable creative cultural leaders such as ex-classmate Governor Kayode Fayemi under his first tenure, working alongside the Ministry of Arts, Culture & Tourism in propelling Ekiti State to a position of National Cultural Excellence (Ado-Ekiti, 2012), Lola Shoneyin on The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives (Aké Festival, Abeokuta, 2013, and Lagos, 2018), Efe Paul Azino on Finding Home (Terra Kulture, Lagos, 2014), Bolanle Austen Peters on Wakaa the Musical (London Edition at the Shaw Theatre, 2016) and Artistic Director of the National Troupe of Nigeria, Mr. Akin Adejuwon (National Theatre, Lagos) in 2015.

References[]