Analysing Dramatic Structure in Ola Rotimi’s Plays: Tragedy, Ritual, and Social Critique

This study provides an analytical examination of dramatic structure in selected plays by Ola Rotimi, investigating how Rotimi integrates Aristotelian tragic frameworks with Yoruba ritual dramaturgy to construct performances of social critique. Ola Rotimi occupies a central position in the development of Nigerian academic drama, and his plays, particularly The Gods Are Not to Blame, Kurunmi, and Our Husband Has Gone Mad Again, represent significant contributions to African theatrical dramaturgy. The research applies dramatic structural analysis informed by both classical tragedy theory and African ritual performance theory, examining plot organisation, character function, spatial symbolism, and thematic resolution across four plays. Performance documentation and critical reception data supplement textual analysis. The study finds that Rotimi's dramatic structures are characterised by a dynamic tension between fatalistic tragic inevitability and the possibility of communal agency, reflecting the playwright's engagement with Yoruba philosophical frameworks of destiny and responsibility. The integration of communal chorus, ritual performance passages, and Pidgin English registers creates a distinctly Nigerian tragic structure that cannot be adequately understood through Euro-American dramatic frameworks alone. The research concludes that Rotimi's dramaturgy represents a theoretically generative model for African tragic form. Keywords: Ola Rotimi, dramatic structure, Nigerian tragedy, ritual drama, African theatre.