Tesfaye Gessesse
Tesfaye Gessesse (born 1936) is regarded as one of the most important exponents of Ethiopian modern theatre. During a career that spanned 40 years, he has been an actor, director,[1] writer and managing director. He wrote and directed several plays which have a great relevance in the modern history of Ethiopian Culture.
Tesfaye Gessesse started his career in the 1950s, when he produced his first plays in Addis Ababa. During the early 1960s, he studied at Northwestern University's theater school, in Evanston, Illinois. He was the only black student enrolled in that department. One of his one-act plays was produced by the department, but the program notes were read aloud from the stage, prior to the performance, so that their "revolutionary" content would not be reported to the monarchist government which was paying his tuition.
After his studies of theatre in the U.S., Tesfaye Gessesse co-founded the Creative Arts Center and became the General Director of Hager Fikir Theatre in 1974. After two years at Hager Fikir, he was suspended and sent to prison[2] for his play "Iqaw" which was said to be anti-Derg and anti-revolutionary by the new regime.
In 1976, Tesfaye Gessesse became Director of the National Theatre Addis Ababa. He is a retired professor of the department of theatre at Addis Ababa University.
References
- ↑ Banham, Martin (1994). The Cambridge guide to African and Caribbean theatre. Cambridge University Press. p. 33. ISBN 0-521-41139-4.
- ↑ Banham, Martin (2004). A history of theatre in Africa. Cambridge University Press. p. 200. ISBN 0-521-80813-8.