The curtains have fallen on one of the most illustrious double-barreled careers in the history of the Nigerian performing arts. Professor Kola Oyewo, the legendary actor, dramatist, and retired university lecturer, has passed away at the age of 80. His family confirmed that the revered icon transcended peacefully, just months after celebrating his milestone octogenarian birthday, which had drawn glowing tributes from the presidency and generations of cultural practitioners.
With his transition, Nigeria loses a national treasure whose life perfectly mirrored the evolution of indigenous storytelling, moving seamlessly from the dust-laden makeshift stages of postwar Yoruba traveling theatre to the hyper-intellectualized amphitheatres of modern academia.
From the Troupe to the Degree
Born on March 27, 1946, in Oba Ile, Osun State, Oyewo’s journey into the dramatic arts did not begin with a formal university degree, but through the rigorous, practical apprenticeship system of Nigeria’s folk pioneers. In 1964, at the tender age of 18, he joined the famous “Oyin Adejobi Theatre Group” in Osogbo. His very first professional role was playing Adejare in Orogun Adedigba, an autobiographical play written by Oyin Adejobi himself.
Oyewo spent nine formative years with Adejobi, learning the textures of Yoruba oral literature, stage presence, and the immense patience he often credited to his father, a master Egungun (masquerade) dancer.
Desiring to deepen his theoretical understanding of the craft, Oyewo made a bold transition to the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) Theatre, where he came under the wing of the late vanguard playwright, Chief Ola Rotimi. It was during this golden era of university theatre that Oyewo achieved immortal status, delivering a masterclass performance as “Odewale”—the tragic, fate-locked protagonist in Rotimi’s epic The Gods Are Not to Blame.
[The Dual Career Path of Professor Kola Oyewo]
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{ The Stage & Screen } { The Academic Sanctuary }
• Oyin Adejobi Troupe (1964) • B.A. Theatre Arts, OAU (1995)
• Unife Theatre & Ola Rotimi • M.A. & Ph.D, University of Ibadan
• Protagonist in “Saworoide” • Senior Lecturer, OAU (Retired 2011)
• Lead in “Koseegbe” & “Sango” • HOD Dramatic Arts, Redeemer’s & Elizade
The Academic Ascent
What made Kola Oyewo uniquely remarkable was his determination to conquer the ivory tower. After decades as a practical performer, he went back to school, earning a certificate in dramatic arts and a certificate in Yoruba oral literature from OAU. By 1995, at nearly 50 years old, he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre Arts from the same institution.
He didn’t stop there. He proceeded to the premier University of Ibadan, where he secured his Master of Arts and eventually a doctorate degree (Ph.D.) in Drama. Armed with both peerless practical experience and advanced theoretical credentials, he joined the faculty at OAU, rising to the rank of Senior Lecturer before his formal retirement in September 2011.
Even in retirement, his passion for grooming the next generation of Nigerian actors kept him in the classroom. He served as the Head of Department for Dramatic Arts at Redeemer’s University and was actively imparting knowledge as a performing arts lecturer at Elizade University in Ilara-Mokin, Ondo State, until his health slowed him down. The arts community has thrown itself into mourning, with various theater guilds and academic unions organizing candlelit processions and special performance salons to honor a man who proved that the stage and the chalkboard could coexist in perfect harmony.
