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James Ene Henshaw

JAMES ENE HENSHAW  (1924 - 2007)

 Nationality:    Nigerian
email:    Click here to contact     Website:    n/a

Literary Agent:    n/a


as one of the pioneering dramatists in Nigeria, James Ene Henshaw was also one of the first to be published outside West Africa. This is Our Chance, which has undergone many reprints, has been extremely popular in West Africa since its first production by the association of Students of African Descent in Dublin in 1948. It has been staged by professional companies as well as school and amateur groups. Surgeon, author and administrator, Henshaw was born on aug. 29, 1924 in Calabar, Nigeria. He attended the National University of Ireland (1943-49) and university of Wales Postgraduate school, Cardiff, Wales, UK from where he obtained his medical degrees. He served in various professional and public service positions at home and abroad and earned several honours including Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) and Knight of the Order of St. Gregory (KSG) by his Holiness Pope Paul V1. a prolific writer who carved a niche for himself especially in playwriting, some of his notable works include: This is Our Chance (Plays from West Africa); Medicine for Love; Dinner for Promotion; Enough is Enough; a Song to Mary Charles - Irish Sister of Charity, and many scholarly articles in national and international journals One thing for which Henshaw should be remembered is the fact that his was the first attempt to be regarded as authentic African drama to be performed by African people. as Henshaw himself recounted of This is Our Chance, he had set out, consciously, to write plays whose scenes take place in surroundings that are not far removed from Africa. His plays, inexorably, capture the pulse and moments of his West African society. They speak of the declining morality of a newly independent society, the failure of becoming, in political and ethical terms, among the evolving elite in society and so on. Henshaw died on 16th august 2007, while working on his last project, translating Shakespeare's Julius Caesar into his native Efik language.

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below is a list of James Ene Henshaw's plays - click on a Play Title for more information

 Children Of The Goddess         Companion For A Chief         Dinner For Promotion         Enough Is Enough         Jewels Of The Shrine         Magic In The Blood         Man Of Character, A         Medicine For Love         Song To Mary Charles, Irish Sister Of Charity         This Is Our Chance

Children Of The Goddess

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
republished by Bounty Press (Nigeria) Ltd, P.O. Box 23856, Ibadan, Nigeria

1st Produced:
-    1964

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
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Companion For A Chief

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
republished by Bounty Press (Nigeria) Ltd, P.O. Box 23856, Ibadan, Nigeria

1st Produced:
-    1964

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Dinner For Promotion

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
republished by Bounty Press (Nigeria) Ltd, P.O. Box 23856, Ibadan, Nigeria

1st Produced:
-    1967

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
can be obtained from james.henshaw@sky.com   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Enough Is Enough

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
republished by Bounty Press (Nigeria) Ltd, P.O. Box 23856, Ibadan, Nigeria

1st Produced:
Benin City, Nigeria    1975

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Ethiope, Benin City, 1976   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Jewels Of The Shrine

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
republished by Bounty Press (Nigeria) Ltd, P.O. Box 23856, Ibadan, Nigeria

1st Produced:
-    1957

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Magic In The Blood

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
republished by Bounty Press (Nigeria) Ltd, P.O. Box 23856, Ibadan, Nigeria

1st Produced:
Newcastle-upon-Tyne    1964

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
in "Children of the Goddess and Other Plays", University of London Press, London, 1964   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Man Of Character, A

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
republished by Bounty Press (Nigeria) Ltd, P.O. Box 23856, Ibadan, Nigeria

1st Produced:
Ilorin    1970

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
in "This Is Our Chance", University of London Press, London, 1957   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
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Medicine For Love

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
republished by Bounty Press (Nigeria) Ltd, P.O. Box 23856, Ibadan, Nigeria

1st Produced:
-    1964

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
can be obtained from james.henshaw@sky.com   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
-

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Song To Mary Charles, Irish Sister Of Charity

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
republished by Bounty Press (Nigeria) Ltd, P.O. Box 23856, Ibadan, Nigeria

1st Produced:
Owerri    1981

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Etewa, Calabar, 1984   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
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Parts:
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This Is Our Chance

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
republished by Bounty Press (Nigeria) Ltd, P.O. Box 23856, Ibadan, Nigeria

1st Produced:
Dublin    1947

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
in "This Is Our Chance", University of London Press, London, 1957. can be obtained from james.henshaw@sky.com   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
-

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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