‘Dear Kaffi’, a play co-produced by filmmaker Bolanle Austen-Peters, has returned to the Terra Kulture Arena in Lagos.

The play, which returned to the stage on December 26, will run every day till January 5, 2025.

Produced by Austen-Peters and Joseph Umoibom, ‘Dear Kaffi’ tells the story of Kikelomo Olota, a 35-year-old single woman navigating the challenges of life, love, and societal expectations in Lagos.

From her teenage years, Kike’s brilliance in academics earned her admiration, but her lack of romantic relationships set her apart.

Determined to fit in, she traded her smarts for popularity, only to find herself entangled in a series of tumultuous relationships.

As Kike struggles to reconcile her desires with societal expectations, she is forced to confront her insecurities, redefine her values, and decide what truly matters. Will she find the courage to be herself, or will the pressure of societal expectations dictate her path?

The play boasts an impressive cast, including Bimbo Manuel, Uzo Osimkpa, Yewande Osamein, Abiola Lepe, Sharon Adaeze, Ralph Okoro, Nonzo Bassey, Hector Amiwero, Floyd Igbo, and Bukola Ogunnote.

The crew includes Ikenna Jude Okpala as stage manager, Kehinde Oretimehin, and Deji Aremu as music directors.

Umoibom described the play as “a perfect companion to lead theatre lovers into a promising new year”.

“Dear Kaffi was a star among the rich line-up of plays that we presented at the Lagos International Theatre Festival. It connected very well with the audience and the feedback has been fantastic,” he said.

“We reckon that it is the perfect play to give to the audience this period. It is the perfect companion to bring theatre lovers to the end of the year and to lead them into a very promising new year.”

For her part, Austen-Peters, who created the annual Lagos International Theatre Festival (LITF) and has led a creative revolution through Terra Kulture in the last twenty years, also expressed joy that the theatre scene is holding its own this holiday season.

“Lagos is definitely agog this yuletide season with everywhere lit up by exciting people. We are pleased to see that our play is one of the programmes giving joy to the people and the response has been tremendous,” she said.

“We are fully sold out and it’s gladdening to see that Dear Kaffi will be part of the activities in the entertainment and creative sector in the first five days of the new year.”

‘Dear Kaffy’ screened at the LITF in November.

Sunmisola Agbebi and Yinka Okeleye, the Nigerian gospel singers, have welcomed their first child together.

The celebrity couple took to Instagram on Monday to share photos of their maternity shoot and express gratitude to God for the latest addition to their family.

“Jesus gives the best gifts. We are grateful Lord,” the post reads.

However, the lovebirds did not disclose the newborn’s name, gender, and date of birth.

The child’s arrival has prompted an outpouring of congratulatory messages from fans and colleagues in the comment section.

Agbebi, 26, and Okeleye got engaged in March 2023.

Their marriage introduction followed at her residence in Lagos. They tied the knot in June 2023.

Agbebi had her first music performance at the age of four. In 2017, she won the Ikorodu Radio Music Challenge. In 2023, she released ‘B’ola’ and ‘MyDaddy, My Daddy’ featuring Lawrence Oyor.

She has released other hit songs, collaborated with notable artistes, and won awards and recognition.

Okeleye, on the other hand, started his music career during his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) days in Ebonyi state.

The gospel artiste discovered his calling while working at the Nigeria Christian Corpers’ Fellowship (NCCF) in Abakaliki.

Chioma Ukpabi, founder of Leads SUWK, an edtech venture offering vocational training, has won the second season of the ‘Fund It Forward‘ contest.

The contest, organised by Channels Television, aims to empower young entrepreneurs and promote social development.

The programme’s grand finale was held on Sunday and hosted by Mojibade Sosanya and Kayode Okikiolu, Channels TV presenters.

The organisers, in a statement, described the event as “a night of tension and triumph, inspiration, celebration”.

“This season has showcased the bold resilience and innovative prowess of 12 dynamic entrepreneurs striving to redefine Nigeria’s socio-economic landscape,” the statement reads.

“From sustainable agriculture to cutting-edge technology, our finalists have defied the odds to remain in the running.”

On her part, Zemmy Momoh, the executive producer of the programme, said: “It is designed to help promising social startups by equipping the founders through rigorous training and experiment mentorships.

“We want them to succeed beyond the show. But it is only proper for us to offer such help on the off-spin because of the brilliant groups of experts we managed to assemble. And these people are also passionate young changemakers.”

The finalists Ukpabi, Favour Adeleke, Israel Kehinde, and Amidu Mohammed were tasked with various challenges, including enterprise pitch, supply side validation, product improvement, and branding for seven weeks.

The four young entrepreneurs also participated in two-week masterclass sessions with facilitators, including economic expert Bismack Rewane.

Adeleke, 22, is the CEO of Qiqi Farms, a blockchain-based platform connecting farmers with markets while targeting a zero-waste agricultural ecosystem.

Kehinde, 24, is the founder of an innovative eReading device tackling Africa’s textbook crisis while Mohammed, 25, is the creator of EcoFeet Pro, eco-friendly footwear with health-tracking features, repurposing scrap materials for sustainability.

Ukpabi was announced as the winner on Sunday night. She also received a N30 million grant to promote her company.

Kehinde was named the first runner-up, receiving N15 million, while Mohammed got N10 million as the second runner-up.