The Terra Academy for the Arts (TAFTA), the creative force co-founded by cultural maven Bolanle Austen-Peters, lit up Victoria Island’s Terra Arena with a firestorm of raw talent, riveting storytelling, and unapologetic social commentary in the latest edition of its signature performance series, TALP‑X.
This wasn’t just a show—it was a movement on stage.
Art Meets Purpose: A Platform for the Next Generation
Backed by the Mastercard Foundation and Utica Capital, TALP‑X is the capstone of TAFTA’s training program, where graduating students transform classrooms into main stages. This edition spotlighted the electric energy of Cohort 6, who joined over 24,440 young Nigerians already empowered through TAFTA’s programs in Lagos, Kano, and Ogun.
From that number, more than 9,000 have graduated, with over 5,000 young women now making waves as actors, animators, designers, and creative entrepreneurs across Nigeria’s booming arts ecosystem.
Setting the Tone: Music & Words That Cut Deep
The evening opened with a soul-stirring set from vocalist Wisdom Joe, whose renditions of “Coat of Many Colors” and “Mr. Jailer” evoked both nostalgia and resistance. Then came Adeoye Adelakun, whose poetic tribute to Yorubaland crackled with cultural pride and rhythmic fire, stirring the audience into thoughtful silence and roaring applause.
Five Acts, One Purpose: To Shake, Rattle and Reflect
The main event saw five bold theatrical pieces staged back-to-back, each blending artistry with activism:
Nocturnal peeled back the emotional tension in a relationship under siege.
Hues elevated women’s strength through unity, sisterhood, and survival.
Kolo turned mental health on its head with a biting satire about society’s warped definitions of “sane.”
Maami served up laughs and familial chaos, spotlighting intergenerational expectations during a wedding fundraiser gone sideways.
Hello, a haunting final act, staged an imagined call between God and Lucifer, with undertones of regret, rebellion, and redemption—underscored by an eerie echo of Adele’s iconic melody.
Each performance left the audience gasping, laughing, or wiping away tears—often all within minutes.
Audience Reactions: Not Just Watching—Feeling
From curtain rise to final bow, Terra Arena pulsed with energy. The crowd rose to its feet multiple times—cheering, snapping fingers, even shouting responses at characters mid‑scene. By the final act, the emotional temperature had peaked, with one guest summing it up perfectly: “This wasn’t theatre—it was an awakening.”
Beyond the Stage: TALP‑X as an Engine of Change
TAFTA isn’t just grooming artists—it’s building creatives who confront real issues. Through courses in acting, stagecraft, business, animation, sound, and lighting, students graduate equipped not only to perform but to innovate and disrupt Nigeria’s cultural scene.
And it’s working.
Thousands of TAFTA alumni are already shaping the country’s creative future—many of them young women breaking into roles once dominated by men. From behind-the-scenes production to front-row stardom, they’re rewriting the story of who gets to lead.
Final Word: A Cultural Earthquake in the Making
TALP‑X 2025 didn’t just entertain—it held up a mirror to Nigerian society. Through bold themes and brilliant execution, it proved once again that the stage can be a tool for transformation. TAFTA and its visionary partners are not just creating performers—they’re building pioneers with voices that matter.
And if this edition is anything to go by, TALP‑X isn’t just a show—it’s Nigeria’s next cultural revolution, one scene at a time.
