Taiwo Akinwande, also known as Yetunde Wunmi, a veteran actress, has confessed that her great dedication for her acting career cost her both her husband and her newborn child.
In an interview with BBC Yorùbá shared on Instagram Wednesday, the 64-year-old actress revealed that her passion to theatre, which began in 1982 with Sunday Akinola’s (Feyi Kogbon) theatre group, contributed significantly to the dissolution of her marriage.
Wunmi revealed that her interest in acting began after she met the great filmmaker Adeyemi Afolayan.
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Wunmi described a painful incident in which she carried her one-month-old baby to a performance in Ilorin, Kwara State, despite the child’s condition.
Sadly, the baby died at the age of one year and ten days.
Despite this, the actress expressed her satisfaction with her decision to pursue a career in theatre.
She explained, “Adelove brought the stage drama to Danjuma Film, close to where I lived then. I cannot forget the man. He wore all white that day, including a white shoe, and came out of a white car.
“Everybody ran towards the man, and I also went closer to make sure I touched his clothes. I was very happy at the time. It felt like I touched gold. That was when my interest in theatre started to grow. I lost my marriage due to my love for this theatre.
“I have never regretted doing theatre since then because God has been gracious to me.”
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Regarding an experience she would never forget, she said, “One experience I cannot forget was when I joined my boss’s group. I was nursing a baby who was still under 41 days old. One day, I thought I would take a stroll, but I saw my group having rehearsals. I asked if there was an outing. My boss’s wife then told me the troupe was travelling. I did not tell my husband the truth; I only told him I was going to visit my mother in another town. I followed the troupe to Ilorin, where we started the stage performances.
“Anytime I was called to the stage to dance, I would wrap the baby in my costume, give the child to someone, and take the child back whenever I was done. The next day, the child had a high temperature, and I went to the pharmacy to get medicine for the baby.
“Two days later, my boss told me to return home due to the baby’s health, but I refused and told him I was staying back.
I was eventually paid N16 — which was the exact amount I spent on treating the child. I was not concerned because I was just happy to have been a part of the show.
“The most painful part of it was that the baby died after just one year and ten days. So, the child did not enjoy the success of theatre with me. It is something I will never forget.”
Watch her speak below…
