Kola Ogunmola

Elijah Kolawole Ogunmola or Kola Ogunmola (Nov. 11, 1925, Okemesi-Ekiti,Ekiti State, Nigeria - 1973) was a Nigerian dramatist, actor, mime, director, and playwright.

He developed Yoruba culture, especially folk opera (drama that combines Christian themes with traditional Yoruba folklore, music and dancing, and music popular in urban culture) into a serious theatre form through his work with his Ogunmola Travelling Theatre (founded c. 1947).

They produced an early stage musical version of Amos Tutuola's The Palm Wine Drinkard, which was performed at the First Pan-African Cultural Congress (Algiers, 1969).

Ogunmola is regarded as one of the most brilliant actors in Africa in the 1950s and ’60s.

He produced Ife Owo in 1965. It was a satire on marriage and wealth. He used Mime and singing as well as drumming to convey his message. He also produced the dramatic version of Tutuola's The Palmwine Drinker. He also exhibited great ability in acting and directing.

He married numerous wives with many children. He is the father of notable Nollywood Stars, Abayomi Ogunmola(deceased) and Peju Ogunmola Omobolanle.

Ogunmola was born to the family of George Ogunmola of Okemesi in 1925. Before his start in professional theatre, Ogunmola was a schoolmaster in Ado-Ekiti. At Emmanuel School, Ado-Ekiti, Ogunmola created school plays performed by students inside and sometimes outside the school. He formed his drama troupe, Ogunmola's Theatre Party around some of the pupils and his fellow teachers. The troupe was modeled after Ogunde's Theatre Party and some of his early operas like "Reign of the Mighty", one of his early plays reveal a Christian influence. Ogunmola's early performances were staged in the Ekiti region of Nigeria. He was known as a performer who was sensitive to the quality of the acting on stage. Like Ogunde, most of his early work were Yoruba folk operas. The rhythm is provided by drums played in the background, the songs are in Yoruba language and dancing was an integral part of the play.

In the 1950s, Ogunmola's theatre traveled extensively throughout the Western region of Nigeria, performing in schools, churches and halls. Though the group performed the same set of plays in every city, the audience can get a unique feeling from seeing each play. Ogunmola's plays allowed for improvisational acting on stage and with each performance, he left room for the unexpected. His acting is also influenced by the feelings of the moment while his knowledge of Yoruba culture and human nature grew with each performance. One of his popular plays, "Love for Money", is a story about a wealthy man who fell for a temptress and as a result separated from his wife. However, his relationship with the temptress ruined him.

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