UB Students Bring Bole Butake’s “And Palm Wine Will Flow” to Life at CURELF

The first production of the day at the CURELF Theatre Hall on Sunday, June 21, belonged to the Level 400 students of the Department of Performing and Visual Arts of the University of Buea, who opened the programme with one of Cameroon’s most celebrated plays.

“And Palm Wine Will Flow”, written by the late Professor Bole Butake, set the tone for the afternoon. First published in 1990, the play is set in the fictional village of Ewawa and tells the story of a Fon whose corrupt and tyrannical rule turns his own people against him. Through the power of the Earth Goddess and the defiance of the chief priest, Shey Ngong, the play explores the consequences of leadership that betrays the people it is meant to serve.

A compelling story of power, resistance and justice, the play examines the struggle of ordinary people against oppression, themes that have kept it relevant for more than three decades.

Born in Nkor, Noni Subdivision in Cameroon’s North West Region, Bole Butake was one of the country’s most influential playwrights and literary scholars. A former lecturer at the University of Yaoundé I, he left behind a rich legacy of dramatic works that continue to be studied and performed across Cameroon and beyond. Though he passed away in October 2016, And Palm Wine Will Flow remains one of his most celebrated and enduring works.

Sunday’s production was directed by Fornyuy Faithngwe, who revealed during the crew presentation at the end of the play that “And Palm Wine Will Flow” has been her favourite play since her secondary school days. She said she thoroughly enjoyed working on the production and had always wished to meet its author, the late Professor Bole Butake.

The performance was supervised by Prof. Taku Victor Jong and formed part of the students’ final-year projects submitted in partial of the requirements for the award of a Bachelor of Arts degree in Performing Arts.