What happens when you step outside of yourself to look within?
Over the past year, I've had the extreme blessing of participating in a project which aimed to create theatrical work out of the experience of being the first offspring in a new country. Through conversations with other artists who shared this experience and in times of reflection on my own, I've written several rough monologues and scenes and compiled them into a body named "Memoirs of an Oyibo/Acata".
The words "oyibo" and "acata" are derived from the Yoruba language and are typically used (depending on the subject and the circumstance) to describe a foreigner. Although I am very familiar with my heritage and nationality, there have been distinct moments where I've felt foreign to a familiar background. At times that background is the United States, at times it is Nigeria or Yoruba culture. (Call it the new age twist on DuBois' double-consciousness , if you will ;)
Either way, the channeling of somewhat fictional and somewhat factual accounts through theatrical conventions has created incredible discoveries for me. Perhaps in reading these rough pieces you'll find some discoveries, too. Enjoy every bite of the series titled "Memoirs of an Oyibo/ Acata".
