The 2024 edition of the annual Lagos Fringe festival held recently, kept its venue, Freedom Park, Broadstreet, Lagos, bubbling with entertainment all through the festival's duration.
One of the plays staged during the Fringe is titled, "Double Cross", written by Tricia (Ajax) Ajanonwu.
'Double Cross', a spellbinding play exploring themes of friendship, trust, love and betrayal, featured Rhoda Inaju as Zara, Susan Ajibade as Efe, Moradeke Adeniran(Lola) and Mayokun Hillary Babatunde, who acted as Ryan. These actors who wowed the audience were mostly members of Nolly Talents, an academy run by the director of 'Double Cross", Femi (Tiger) Johnson.
Produced by Yemi Olanrewaju, the thrilling story of three friends unknowingly in 'love' with one womaniser brings to the fore, the sad reality of an age overtaken by deceit, exploitation and dishonesty.
From the moment the curtain opened, ushering in Efe (Susan Ajibade), the faces of members of the audience lit up with smiles. Efe proved herself as a rare actress; natural and was in character all through.
The plot follows the three inseparable friends; Lola, Zara and Efe, the eldest among them. Lola, a classy, rude and materialistic lady, is always at loggerheads with Efe, a loud, strong-willed and defensive lady who is cautious about love.
Their friend Zara, being a sassy, carefree and humorous lady, does not really concern herself with whatever squabbles the other two engage in. She brings a Gen Z flair to the group's dynamics and is constantly documenting her life on social media; sharing the highs and lows with her followers.
As time passes, the three girls realise they've all been deceived into dating the same man. Their loyalty is tested, but instead of tearing each other into pieces, they join forces to deal ruthlessly with the player Ryan, who goes by many aliases.
The trio always share every detail of their lives including their monthly girl's hangout. On this particular weekend, overflowing with excitement, the girls share the big news about the new guy in their lives, oblivious of the rude shock that awaits them.
It is during the conversation that little pieces of information start to sound eerily familiar. One by one, they realise they're all dating Ryan, the same smooth talking, charming guy. You can imagine the mood in the room at this juncture. The audience even was as shocked and as surprised as the actors. They survive a heated argument that erupts as a result of the feeling of betrayal and heartbreak.
The situation however, takes an unexpected twist when they learn that Zara is pregnant with Ryan's child. What they do to the Casanova who they discover is also married is better watched than imagined.
One beautiful lesson here is that though their story is a painful one, it turned out to be an empowering journey of self-discovery and friendship. They vow to stick together and protect each other in the future.
On what informed his directorial concept, Femi Tiger, said that the fact that we live in a fake world right now, where people are double-faced makes the play timely. "You meet people online and you can't tell the kind of people they are. I have many women around me that have been heartbroken several times, so I wanted to bring to life the ills happening in the society where a man can be sampling several women and it's fine by them. Women, especially the mature ones, should not be blinded by sweet talks but follow their instincts. The red flags are always there; they should be careful," he said.
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Speaking about his participation in the 2024 Lagos Fringe as well as the play, Yemi Olanrewaju said, "I have always been a theatre person; I do films, TVs and stage. I decided to come to the Fringe this year because I realised that it is a melting pot for creatives and you can only tap from them if you are a part of them. I'm elated about the performance of the cast which was well selected, as well as the director. It's been a rollercoaster journey. The story is relatable; it's good that the girls learned their lessons while the guy gets punished at the end."
