GRAPHIC SHOWBIZ, Thursday, December 27, 2012, Pg. 3 & 8. National Theatre unveils new plans

By Mary Ankrah
THE National Theatre of Ghana (NTG) has begun repositioning itself to compete in the national and global market of arts and culture, the deputy Executive Director (Artistic) of the NTG, Mrs Amy Appiah Frimpong, has said.

In doing that, she said, the NTG would introduce new programmes and freshen the old ones to meet international standards as well as attract more Ghanaians to patronise its arts and cultural activities.

Mrs Frimpong made this known at the launch of the 20th anniversary of the NTG in Accra last Thursday.The one-year long anniversary is slated for January 2013 to December 2013, and will be on the theme: “National Theatre at 20: Still the Hub for Culture and Artistic Excellence”.

She indicated that the NTG planned to focus more on it assets while using its potentials to make more productive gains in the Ghanaian and international market of arts and culture for continuous growth.

The move, she said, would enable the theatre to revitalise itself and be known for its quality arts experiences, strong educational programmes,conducive environment and friendly community space for audiences of all backgrounds.

“ We should be the first place on everyone’s mind every time they look for something entertaining, educational or just sharing time with friends,” she opined.

It will be marked with various activities, including performances such as high life, drama, concert party, funworld, World Theatre Day and kiddafest, among other entertainment programmes.

She said efforts were also underway to reach out to members of the arts domain to consider the National Theatre as a preferred location for all their activities.

She, therefore, called on all Ghanaians, corporate bodies and organisations to support its creative process and vision to generate funds for its programmes and activities to make tickets affordable to all classes of people in society, especially those in the rural areas.