Scholars Invited to Contribute to Festschrift Honouring Professor Benedict Binebai's Legacy in Drama and Decolonial Thought
A major academic Festschrift titled "Decoloniality and Poetics of Drama and Theatre of the Silent Space" is set to honour the lifetime contributions of Professor Benedict Binebai, a distinguished playwright, scholar, orator, and critic whose work has shaped the study and practice of Niger Delta drama and African theatre.
Professor Binebai is being celebrated as a scholar, teacher, dramatist, critic, and cultural icon, with the Festschrift specifically recognizing his exploration of resistance, identity, myth, and what has become known in academic circles as the poetics of the silent space.
Scholars are being invited to submit research across two broad categories. The first focuses directly on appraisals of Binebai's dramatic works, covering areas such as his dramaturgical vision, his engagement with resistance and protest, questions of identity, memory and history in his plays, and his treatment of gender, marginality and social justice. Other proposed topics include the philosophy of the silent space, tradition and cultural hybridity in his dramaturgy, comparative readings against other African dramatists, and his contributions to Nigerian and African dramatic theory and criticism.
The second category widens the scope to broader thematic areas in African theatre and decolonial scholarship, including decoloniality and the future of African theatre, postcolonial and decolonial frameworks, theatre as activism and social transformation, indigenous knowledge systems in performance, memory and trauma in the politics of remembrance, and digital performance and decolonial imaginings, among others.
According to the organizers, abstracts are due by 31st August, with full paper submissions expected by 31st October. The completed volume is scheduled for publication in March 2027.
The Festschrift is being edited by Professor Abiodun Olayiwola of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Professor Tam Azorbo of Niger Delta University, and Dr Fred Emi Brisibie, who are jointly coordinating submissions and inquiries from interested scholars.
Organizers describe the project as an effort at "honouring a legacy, advancing decolonial thought, and inspiring the future" of African theatre scholarship.
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