Joy Isi Bewaji's Where's My Groom?, a one-woman play starring Nene Aliemeke, offers audiences an intimate and deeply unsettling theatre experience this July in Lagos. The play, which runs every Sunday at 5 pm for the rest of the month, explores themes of betrayal, family, and womanhood through the lens of a single character who walks onto the stage in a wedding gown and never leaves until she has made the audience feel the full weight of her story.
A Character Shaped by Neglect and Betrayal
The protagonist's life is a series of demands placed on her before she could refuse. Parentified from childhood, she becomes financially responsible for her household, even investing in Bitcoin early to support her family. When a man who seems to be the first thing just for her comes along, he eventually leaves to marry her sister. Now, in her wedding dress, she grapples with unnamed desires and makes decisions that provoke irritation in the audience.
Aliemeke's performance is the sole anchor of the play. She plays only the woman, and the absence of a supporting cast never feels like a deficit. Her ability to carry the entire narrative alone speaks to her skill as a performer, known to Nigerian audiences from Netflix's The Origin: Madam Koi-Koi, but here operating in an entirely different register.
The Gap Between Judgment and Reality
Joy Isi Bewaji's script refuses to soften the character's desperation, bad choices, and extreme behavior that edges toward satire. Instead, it insists on tracing these traits back to their roots: a whirlwind of neglect, betrayal, and a loneliness that looks like instability from the outside. The discomfort this creates is intentional, forcing the audience to confront the gap between how women like this character are judged and what actually made them that way.
Aliemeke's interaction with the audience is a key element of the production. She moves through the space, makes eye contact, asks questions, and holds gazes long enough to create meaning. The audience responds with laughter, shock, and even talking back, but none of it disrupts the play. Instead, it feels like the play is working exactly as intended.
Performance Details and Reception
Where's My Groom? is written and directed by Joy Isi Bewaji and stars Nene Aliemeke. It runs every Sunday at 5 pm for the remainder of July. The play has been described as an uncomfortable watch, with the discomfort being the point. It challenges audiences to look beyond surface judgments and consider the deeper causes of a woman's desperation and poor decisions.
