Nigeria's equivalent of London's National, the National Arts Theatre in Lagos, is up for sale. The government of Nigeria, as part of an across-the-board privatisation programme to raise funds for public projects, has included the National Arts Theatre in a slate of buildings up for sale to the highest bidder.
A spokesman for Nigeria's Guild of Dancers (the theatre hosts a wide variety of performance art) described the theatre as "the soul of the nation" which deserved to be supported rather than sold. The artistic community is entirely behind the growing campaign to save the theatre, but at the moment the sale looks likely to go ahead.
by Paul Webb Theatrenow
