Women of Owu is a 2006 drama written by Femi Osofisan and published through University Press PLC.[1] Adapted from Euripides' The Trojan Women, the book uses the combination of choruses, songs and dance to depict the history of the population of Owu kingdom after a combined military force of Ife, Oyo and Ijebu invaded the city of Owu for seven years killing all of its male inhabitants and children.[2]
Plot
Women of Owu focuses on the aftermath of a 19th-century war-torn Owu Kingdom. It reflects on the pains, depression and agony of the survivors who were only women after the killing of all males in the kingdom by the combined forces of Ife, Oyo and Ijebu.[3] The relationship between Women of Owu and The Trojan Women has been explored by Olakunbi Olasope.[4]
Characters
Anlugbua
Lawumi
Erelu Afin
Gesinde
Orisaye
Adumaadan
Okunade The Maye
Iyunloye
Productions
The play premiered at The Theatre Chipping Norton in February 2004 and then embarked on an English and Scottish tour.[5]
Themes
Some dominant themes evident in the play include:
War and Violence
Gender Roles and Power
Resistance and Rebellion
Trauma and Healing
Religion and Spirituality
These themes are woven together to create a complex and nuanced exploration of the human experience in the context of war, oppression, and resistance.
Further reading
Felix Budelmann, Trojan Women in Yorubaland: Femi Osofisan Women of Owu, in Hardwick, Lorna and Carol Gillespie (eds.), Classics in Postcolonial Worlds (2007, Oxford University Press)
^Olasope, Olakunbi (2012). "To Sack a City or to Breach a Woman's Chastity: Euripides' Trojan Women and Osofisan's Women of Owu". African Performance Review, Journal of African Theatre Association UK. 6 (1): 111–121.
