Theatre Performance, Humanities and Niger Delta Crisis: A Study of Martins Dyke Odu’s Sarowa’s Tragedy and Jeta Amata’s Black November (2012)

Abstract

This study examines the intersection of theatre, film, and socio-political advocacy in addressing the Niger Delta crisis, in Martins Dyke Odu’s Sarowa’s Tragedy and Jeta Amata’s Black November (2012). This paper adopts Frantz Fanon’s Postcolonial theory and Cheryll Glotfelty’s Ecocriticism. Sarowa's Tragedy and Black November critique the ecological degradation and political neglect experienced in the Niger Delta. Through these narratives, the Niger Delta emerges as more than a region of conflict; it becomes a symbol of ecological crisis and economic exploitation. Odu’s play portrays the resilience of a community facing environmental destruction and violence, while Amata’s film expands this narrative to a global audience, underscoring international complicity in the crisis. Both works explore the despair of the Niger Delta people, their determination to resist, and the “alternative centres of power” that marginalize them. This analysis reveals how Odu and Amata use their respective genres playwriting and filmmaking to illustrate the Niger Delta’s ecological and political conflicts. Through vivid depictions of individual suffering and structural injustice, they evoke a collective sense of loss, betrayal, and the pressing need for reform. This research contends that theatre and film can serve as powerful tools for awareness and change, advocating for a solution to the Niger Delta crisis that respects both the environmental and socio-political rights of its people. By situating Sarowa's Tragedy and Black November, this study underscores the potential of the humanities to foster empathy, activisms, and transformative discourse.