DYNAMICS OF NTA FESTIVAL PERFORMANCE AMONG IRETE PEOPLE OF SOUTHEAST NIGERIA

Abstract

African festivals are often reconstructed in order not to lose them completely. Nta hunting festival has undergone such reconstruction. Although existing studies have mainly focused on the religious and cultural values of the performance, the contemporary and cultural reconstruction have not been thoroughly explored. This study, therefore, examined the reconstruction of Nta festival and its impact on both the festival and the people of Irete in Nigeria. Richard Schechner’s Theory of Performance was adopted as the framework. The study utilised the qualitative method involving ethnographic and descriptive designs. Primary data were collected through participant observation and 23 Key Informant Interviews conducted with purposively selected participants, including the autonomous king of Irete (Eze), 10 traditional title holders, the Onye Ishi Ala (Chief Priest of Irete) and 11 members of the Eze cabinet. Twenty In-depth Interviews were conducted with eight council members drawn from Ndi Eze, Ndi Oki, Irete Hunters Union and Ndi Oha; seven notable stakeholders in the cultural reformation of Nta festival; and five government officials. Four Focus Group Discussions were conducted, one each with the Umunweju Family meeting (Lagos Branch), the youth wing of Irete Community Development Union, Irete Hunters Union and Irete Christian Fathers Association. Data were content analysed using descriptive and narrative styles. Christianity, Western education and modernity aided the decline in participation in Nta festival as it is regarded as unchristian. The festival has therefore been reconstructed to improve participation, leading to two forms of performance: the traditional Nta festival celebrated by adherents of Igbo traditional religion and the reconstructed Nta festival celebrated by the Eze Agubiam and his cabinet members. This also accommodates other Irete people who are Christians and would not like to participate in the traditional festival. The traditional Nta festival remains as handed down by the Irete forbears and is being practised by the Onye Ishi Ala, members of the Oha cult (Ala priests) and interested Irete indigenes. This form starts with the Onye Ishi Ala’s visit to Nkolo forest where he offers sacrifices to the ancestors on behalf of the community. In the reconstructed Nta festival, the Eze, members of his cabinet and other stakeholders add a “Christian touch” to the celebration of Nta. The performance takes place at the Eze’s palace and begins with the blessings of the Reverend Father. All sacrifices to the gods are cancelled and replaced with prayers to the Christian God, making the festival of lesser traditional sacrality. The reduction in traditional sacrality highlights the tension between indigeneity and modernity as occasioned by religion and culture. Due to the reconstruction of the performance, more people now participate in Nta festival. The reconstructed Nta festival produces a unique Igbo hybrid festival that represents a new model of religious and cultural expression in contemporary Igbo Irete, thereby protecting the festival from extinction and improving Irete community relations.