Esoteric and aesthetic features of Hungan dance performance among the Ogu people of Badagry, Lagos State

Abstract

This study explored the esoteric and aesthetic features of Hungan dance performance among the Ogu people of Badagry in Lagos State. Hungan is the traditional dance performance conducted as rite of passage for the dead among the Ogu people of Badagry in Lagos, Nigeria. The rite is performed by the beating of special drums also called Hungan. It is a mixture of rites performance and exhibition of the cultural aesthetics of the Ogu people. Until this rite is performed, the departed is not seen to have gone to meet his ancestor. This paper, therefore, investigated the orphic and beautiful features of Hungan dance performance as a tool for socio-cultural cohesion among the Ogu people of Badagry, Lagos. The paper aimed at revealing the cultural importance of Hungan as a means of celebrating individual’s sense of social responsibility and contribution to the growth of the society. The performance was commissioned with over 30 performers comprising six expert Hungan drummers, twelve dancers, and twelve ritual singers before over eighty members of the audience. The research method adopted was a combination of observation, interviews and textual analysis of songs and chants. Employing Bauma’s performance theory, the study discovered that Hungan has both esoteric and aesthetic features as ritual dance and means of entertainment among the Ogu people of Badagry.  Findings further revealed that song rendition and dance performance during Hungan are spontaneous and a confirmation of the creative ingenuities of the performers on stage. The study concluded that Hungan as ritual and entertainment performance is a highly revered culture among the Ogu people, a status symbol and a way of measuring an individual’s social responsibility and commitment to societal growth.