By Savithri Rodrigo
Lagos, Nigeria (Commonwealth Union)_When one lives in an area that’s considered dangerous and life threatening even if you simply step out on the road to run an errand, then society is as much to blame for the status quo as law enforces and government. The district of Oworonshoki in Lagos, Nigeria is dangerous and a young dancer decided to change the plight of his community which has cowered in fear for decades.
Sunday Obiajulu Ozegbe majored in Urban Contemporary Dance and he stepped out of his comfort zone and leaped high with a need to change the circumstances of his community. In 2019, the dancer and activist decided to found the Slum Party, dancing in the street so his people won’t be afraid to step out any more. There was a palpable change with the positive energy and infectious vibe permeating throughout the community.
Sunday and his dance troupe organised dance workshops and performances in the streets to raise awareness about social issues in his country, instilling a sense of hope in the Oworo community whose sense of hopelessness was rooted in poverty and gang violence. His work gained him the accolade of the 2021 Seed Award and even gained him the enthusiasm of film maker Louise Monlau to conceptualise a film on his work. He’s adept at Hip-hop, Ballroom, Naija Urban and Ballet.
A graduate of the Street Project Foundation Creative Youth Boot Camp, he trained at the QDance Center in Lagos and was selected to intern at the SPF Facility in Adedayo Liado. Here he went under the expert tutelage of renowned dance professionals Qudus Onikeku, Nnamadi Ndubusi, Onye Ozuzu, Horatio Macuacua and Kaffy.
Just one year after his graduation in 2016, he choreographed a nostalgic dance repertoire blending both contemporary and folk/traditional dances which got him second place at the prestigious Lagos State Talent Hunt Competition. His acting and dance moves are a regular feature at numerous dance festivals and theatre performances which has augmented his following leading him to pursue his activism to instigate change. In 2017, he was selected for training in artistic activism at the Center for Artistic Activism New York.
The founder/director of David’s Generation Dance Group which has dancers between the ages of 6 to 21 and founder and artistic director of Ennovate Dance House which is a collective of dancers and movement artists addressing social issues, Sunday’s passion for his roots in Oworoshoki is what has led him to build a team of strong formidable dancers who can be professional dancers anywhere in the world.
Sunday’s latest work is a tale of how the power of dance can moot social and political awakening. “I did not vote Bubu”, the nickname of President Muhammadu Buhari, is a dance event which he conceptualized with the aim of encouraging the community to vote in the upcoming presidential election.
