Why many Ghanaians don't patronise theatre - George Quaye explains

Ghanaian playwright and CEO of ImageBureau, George Quaye, has given reasons why the theatre space is not patronised widely by Ghanaians.

According to him, many Ghanaians view theatre as something that should be consumed for free, thus their low patronage of theatre productions.

George Quaye said this during a recent interview on Hitz FM, where he blamed the mindset on the culture and history of theatre in Ghana when productions were shown at no cost to the audience.

“We need to elevate the thinking of people. And you cannot blame them. They consumed theatre from a place of nothing and it was free.

Citing an example, he said, “When all these music groups were going around the country…Osei Kofi’s band and others, they would have small theatre performances before the main concert. And that was free”.

He further noted that the story-telling settings in the Ghanaian traditional homes also give the impression that theatre should not be paid for.

George Quaye further called for collaboration among theatre stakeholders in order to develop the sector in Ghana.

He stressed the importance of theatre producers working together rather than competing, as the industry hasn't achieved the global recognition that musicians like Shatta Wale, Stonebwoy, Sarkodie, and others have.

“I’ve been asked many times why I share many people’s plays even when I'm running my plays. Why? Because we cannot compete. We need to collaborate.

“We cannot compete because we haven’t gotten to where the musicians have gotten to. Shatta Wale and Stonebwoy can compete. Sarkodie and Samini can compete. King Promise and KiDi, Kuami Eugene, they can all compete. They can because, globally, they have gotten recognition," he said.

He pointed out that while musicians can command ticket prices up to 700 cedis, theatre doesn't enjoy the same level of patronage.

To change this, George Quaye says there's a need to shift people's perceptions about the value of theatre and to recognise it as an art form worth paying for.

ID/NOQ

Watch the latest episode of E-Forum here



Ghana’s leading digital news platform, GhanaWeb, in conjunction with the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, is embarking on an aggressive campaign which is geared towards ensuring that parliament passes comprehensive legislation to guide organ harvesting, organ donation, and organ transplantation in the country.