London: Ìyà-Ilé (The First Wife) at Soho Theatre

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<img align=right width=500 src=http://www.nigerialinks.com/images/iya-ile/iyale.jpg>
Soho Theatre
Ìyà-Ilé (The First Wife)
By Oladipo Agboluaje | Directed by Femi Elufowoju, jr

14 May – 20 June

In 1980’s Nigeria, Chief Adeyemi’s household prepares for his wife’s 40th birthday celebrations. This is a period of military rule and huge social change for the whole nation. The Adeyemi family is even more volatile. This is a family to whom power is currency, secrets are rife and whose servants are well trained in the art of social climbing. Is this scene set for a party or a coup?

An unmissable theatrical party set in 1980s Nigeria, by the writer of hit shows The Estate and The Hounding of David Oluwale, from British African theatre company Tiata Fahodzi. Starring Jude Akuwudike (BBC’s Moses Jones).

Founded in 1997, Tiata Fahodzi produces new work that explores the rich heritage of theatre sourced from people living within British African communities. Tiata Fahodzi last visited Soho with the critically acclaimed Joe Guy by Roy Williams (2007) and they closed the Almeida Theatre’s 2008 Festival with their popular annual new-writing and music showcase, Tiata Delights.

‘Spirited, humourous, involving stuff... tremendous!’ Evening Standard on The Estate

Get in at the start: £10 tickets 14-23 May
sohotheatre.com | 020 7478 0100

[timiadebowale]

The tonal accents on Iya-Ile would be right if they represent the meaning of Iya Ile as "homely suffering". They would be wrong however if they are meant to represent the literal meaning of the first wife, which is, the mother of the house.

Yoruba language tonal accents are of the first three notes of music, namely doh reh mih. The accents presented on the book title is doh doh-reh mih. If the title is meant to be, as I said earlier, the mother of the house, then the accents should be doh mih-reh mih.

I have seen too many film titles, purportedly expounding the fundamentals of Yoruba grammar, but wrongly, that I feel I should point this out.

[Ayatullah]

Thanks timiadebowale for a very good observation. I wonder why they have to destroy the title of their play. It is quite shameful, because they have with the tonal accent used destroyed everything!

Actually the yoruba word for the first wife is a single word IYALE with the tonal accent (Doh-mih-mih). Which should be a stroke on "I"(left stroke), on "A"(right stroke) and on "E"(right stroke).

I feel bad when I go around the cities of Nigeria buying Yoruba CDs with such bad tonal accents. I wonder why these artistes do not consult those who know. They only bring shame to the beautiful yoruba language because they are in a hurry to make money.

I believe its too late for them to make changes to their poster that will be all over London now, but they should at the begining of the play apologise for the error and correct it in subsequent print.

[okenikpoto]

I fear you people on NVS. I salute the observation sha.

[ciroagobe]

Same here. Its aweson. Uncle ciro