The MTN Foundation has arts and culture as one of its focus areas and has since its incorporation provided support through partnerships, sponsorships and scholarships to projects that seek to advance, celebrate and preserve Nigerian arts and culture.
Several of such projects are theatre productions that are based on folktales, biographies and fictional stories that articulate the culture and lived experiences of Nigerians. Some projects the Foundation has sponsored include Oluronbi the Musical, Saro the Musical, Wakaa the Musical, Fela and the Kalakuta Queens and the Eko Theatre Carnival. So far, the Foundation has invested over N365 million in 15 theatre productions that have been held in some of the most famous stages in Nigeria, including Terra Kulture and the MUSON Centre.
The Foundation’s sponsorship has helped see to the retelling of African stories andactualisation of the artistic visions of over 15 Nigerian producers including Ayo Jaiyesinmi, Bolanle Austen-Peters and Ayo Ajayi, who is a graduate of the MUSON School of Music scholarship programme funded by the Foundation.
Beyond these, the value of the Foundation’s support is also evident in the number of creatives that have been involved in and advanced their careers through the platform provided by the Foundation’s support. Over 3000 creatives and skilled professionals have benefitted from MTN’s partnership and support for theatre productions and empowered for an increasingly international audience. This also ties into one of the Foundation’s core values to promote youth empowermentthrough corporate social investment.
The MTN Foundation is not resting in its efforts to promote Nigerian arts and culture through theatre production as it is supporting five theatre productions in the second quarter of 2021. The productionsare Tony Wants to Marry, Ibiom – When Doves Fly, Death and the King’s Horseman, OMG the Musical and Flower, a virtual show. Even in a pandemic, creatives can still count on brands like MTN Foundation for support in their mission to keep retelling Nigerian stories.