Assessment of Children’s Theatre Development in Abuja, FCT

Children's theatre as a distinct performance genre serves educational, entertainment, and psychosocial functions for young audiences, and examining its development in the Federal Capital Territory provides a perspective on metropolitan Nigeria's arts ecology. This study assessed the development of children's theatre in Abuja Municipal Area Council and Bwari Area Council, Federal Capital Territory. A mixed-methods design employed questionnaires administered to 15 children's theatre practitioners, 20 parents, and 10 school cultural coordinators, supplemented by observation of three children's theatre productions. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were applied. Results revealed that only 7 registered children's theatre companies operated in the FCT, compared to 24 adult-focused companies. Audience surveys showed that children's theatre attendance was highest among children aged 5 to 10, with attendance declining sharply in the 11 to 14 age group. Production costs were identified by 80 percent of practitioners as the primary barrier to more frequent performances. State institutional support was minimal, with National Theatre involvement in children's programming limited to one annual festival. School visits constituted 60 percent of the audience base for most companies. The study concludes that children's theatre in Abuja is underdeveloped relative to the city's size and demographics. Recommendations include an annual FCT Children's Theatre Festival with government co-sponsorship, school-based children's theatre residency programmes, and dedicated children's performance space provision within new public cultural infrastructure.

Keywords: children's theatre, Abuja FCT, arts development, youth audiences, theatre ecology