Doing Life With… is a BellaNaija Features series that showcases how people live, work, travel, care for their families and… everything in between. We are documenting the lives of all people and ensuring everyone is well-represented at BN.
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This week, we are doing life with Emmanuel Osahor, a lawyer, teacher and founder and executive director of Slum to Stage Africa, a nonprofit founded to create preliminary and intermediate dance training for children and young adults in developing areas in Abuja through performing and creative arts programs that enhance both their academic and artistic performance.
Enjoy the conversation!
Hey Emmanuel, how do you do?
I am very well, thank you.
Can you share a bit about your background—your upbringing, education, and any key moments from your childhood that shaped you into what you are today?
I grew up in a very traditional African home. Certain rules were absolute- no going out unless for errands; must be home before 5 pm; study hard to secure a good job with clear options: pursue professional courses, with a choice between medicine or engineering. I, however, decided to study law at Benson Idahosa University.
One childhood memory that profoundly shaped my work ethic is a story my mother shared with me. When I was one month old, my mother had to sell farm produce in a town far from our village. She wrapped me on her back and set off with her younger brother on their motorcycle. Along the way, it started raining, so intense that my mother and her brother fell into the mud. Floodwaters swept away her sandals. Despite this, my mother pressed on, sold her produce at the market and returned home barefoot.
Whenever we visited that area later in life, she would point to where she had fallen and say, “This is where I fell, with you on my back.” Her story made me decide that distance would never be a barrier to impacting others, achieving my goals or securing the bag.
So, you’re a ballet dancer
Yes, I am.
Before we talk about that, how do you balance lawyering with dancing?
Both career paths are so demanding and rewarding, and I’m still figuring out how to balance them. I remember when I was preparing for my Bar Finals, and I received a call from Kaffy to perform with the dancers at the Big Brother Naija 2019 Opening Night. Some of my classmates—who had seen me on TV and social media—wondered if I was even studying for the exams. Most days, I rush from rehearsals during office breaks, or after hours when my colleagues have already gone home. The fun part? The thrill of changing outfits in the car on the way to my next appointment. One moment I’m in a suit; the next, I’m in a costume. It honestly makes me feel like Batman—switching identities.
Tell us about your dancing journey
At school or in church, I was always involved in the cultural dance troupe as a child. Most times, I was almost the only boy or one of just two or four boys surrounded by ten or fifteen girls. Dancing in church, however, irritated my father so much that he forbade me from dancing, even during the regular praise and worship sessions. To him, I was meant to be quiet, refined, and mysterious—preparing to one day be a Chief Judge. So, slowly, I became quiet.
Until my third year in university, I had never heard of ballet. One Saturday, a female friend needed to rent ballet costumes for a Christmas carol performance at church. She asked me to accompany her to the dance studio to pick them up, and I agreed. That day, I walked into the studio as a law student, and I left as an artist. I asked the dance teacher, Aunty Marie if I could join the class. She said yes. I paid my ballet fees using my feeding money and showed up for training the very next day.
For the next four years, I trained every Saturday, never missing a single dance class. And I’ve been dancing ever since.
Considering that ballet is somewhat strange to Nigeria, did you face any form of pushback or stereotypes when you started?
The only significant pushback I experienced came from my family, particularly my parents. I love and adore them deeply, so their resistance to the one art form through which I express myself was particularly hurtful. It affected me profoundly, in a way that no other opposition ever has.
Another moment that came close to that level of pain occurred during my NYSC year. I performed for the then Director General of NYSC, and the performance was so well-received that I was immediately assigned to the Dance and Drama CDS group. However, when I went to register my details at the NYSC office, the officer in charge asked what I had studied in school. When I told her I studied law, she allocated me to the Legal Aid CDS instead. I reminded her that I had already been assigned to the Dance and Drama CDS. She looked at me with a mixture of disdain and disbelief and said, “Hmm, a lawyer who wants to dance.” I was embarrassed, to say the least. Despite that moment, I had an amazing experience in the Dance and Drama CDS. It reminded me that my passion cannot be diminished by the judgments of others.
Well done for that
Thank you.
It must be a good feeling to be the first Nigerian brand ambassador for Ballet Rosa
Ballet Rosa Homme is a European dancewear line solely for male dancers, and being the first Nigerian Brand Ambassador is a tremendous honour. Ballet Rosa Homme represents a blend of sophistication, artistry, and global excellence, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to be part of such a prestigious brand. As a Nigerian, this recognition also brings pride to the ballet contemporary community in my country, showing that there are no boundaries when it comes to talent, fashion, and cultural representation. Honestly, it was this honour that motivated me to continue breaking new ground after COVID struck and things were beginning to open up slowly.
What has been your proudest moment since you started dancing?
My proudest moment was when I finally told my parents about Slum to Stage Africa. I had been preparing for the third edition of our annual Slum to Stage Event, and this year’s production was particularly significant. It featured a dance performance in ARTvocacy against Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV), inspired by Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart. I could feel that Slum to Stage was gaining real momentum, and I knew it would be unfair to keep my parents out of the loop any longer. I am particularly proud of this year’s Slum to Stage Africa production.
What do you mean by “finally told my parents”?
I founded Slum to Stage in 2022, but they knew about it until last month. Sharing this with them felt like a milestone, a way of letting them see the bigger picture of what I had been building.
Oh, that’s cool
Yeah, another proud moment for me was performing for the Olu of Warri and his dignitaries at the King’s Banquet, which marked the conclusion of the Elevate Africa Convergence. I also used ballet to compete in the RedBull Dance Your Style event, where I reached the finals in Abuja.
Tell us about Slum to Stage Africa
Slum to Stage is a nonprofit I founded to create preliminary and intermediate dance training for children and young adults in developing areas in Abuja through performing and creative arts programs, that enhance both their academic and artistic performance. Slum to Stage is not a dance school or academy, but we use dance to teach children socio-behavioural and emotional skills needed for life-long success. In essence, at Slum to Stage, the dance and technique children learn are not the focus, the behavioural skills they develop during these trainings are.
What motivated you to start the initiative?
Starting Slum to Stage was a deeply personal journey for me. When the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted my dreams of attending The Juilliard School, I found myself reevaluating my path. Rather than focusing solely on my aspirations, I travelled to Rwanda with Mindleaps, a nonprofit organization based in New York that operates in six African countries. There, I worked with out-of-school youth, helping them develop skills and increase their chances of returning to formal education. Many of these young people were children of survivors of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, facing immense challenges as they sought to rebuild their lives and education.
During my time with Mindleaps, I also travelled to Guinea, where I trained 40 Guinean youth to join the Mindleaps staff in West Africa. What stood out to me in my experience was the unique approach to teaching the children. As international trainers, we were taught to engage each child with compassion. We encouraged them to explore complex routines creatively, motivated them to develop the self-esteem needed for independent performance, and guided them to collaborate effectively as a team. Mindleaps was not focused on whether the children could execute a perfect split or perform 32 turns; instead, the emphasis was on nurturing their confidence and resilience.
After my time in Guinea, I approached the Executive Director of Mindleaps with a suggestion to open a training centre in Nigeria. The Executive Director responded that if we found a Nigerian partner organisation, they would come to train the children in our community. Upon returning to Nigeria, I searched for an organisation to pitch Mindleaps’ proposal, but I found none willing to sponsor underprivileged children in dance. Most organisations were focused on addressing issues like health, technology, sexual and gender-based violence, and other pressing concerns.
I decided to create the organisation myself. I didn’t establish Slum to Stage to make a grand impact on the world; I founded it to provide a safe and supportive space for children in my community—one free from ridicule, unhealthy competition, and unrealistic expectations. I wanted children in government-owned schools to have access to ballet and other performing arts, and that’s exactly what we’ve been doing since 2022.
What about the challenges?
A lot of challenges, especially financially. But one of the most challenging periods of my life was in 2023. I had just lost a scholarship opportunity I had been eagerly anticipating. At the same time, I was teaching dance for 9 hours a day, 3 days a week, all in the name of “Summer Classes.” I lost half of my body weight in 3 months and vowed never to take on that much again unless I had the capacity for it. I was balancing this with my law career and my career as a performing artist—juggling performances in Lagos, Ghana, and Abuja. Those were trying times. The funny thing is, I was taking on these jobs just so I could generate enough money to fund Slum to Stage’s operations. If I kept listing the challenges, we’d never finish this conversation. But thank God for how far we’ve come. While I’m still facing challenges, I’ve grown tremendously. The experiences of the past have built in me a level of tenacity that I carry into the present, and into the challenges that lie ahead.
From your journey so far and your projections for the future, what does success mean to you?
For me, success has always been about growth. In this context, success means that Slum to Stage has helped create a society where children and young adults feel mentally safe, are treated with respect and dignity, and have equal opportunities to activate, develop, and pursue their talents—both artistic and academic. Success will look like children who can confidently follow their artistic passions, free from the pressure of insecurity. Success will also look like more male African ballet dancers boldly claiming space in a traditionally female-dominated world of dance
Do you have an unconventional thought about the world that you think people might not agree with?
I believe the global development and NGO sector often unintentionally undermines the creative potential of youth, especially in Africa, by focusing too heavily on a “problem-solving” mentality instead of nurturing self-expression and cultural vitality through arts, including dance.
The unconventional thought here is that NGOs and development initiatives should focus more on empowering youth through universal cultural creativity—dance, music, arts—because these are powerful tools for personal development, community cohesion, and economic opportunities, especially in the context of a globalizing world where cultural industries are increasingly valued. Yet, these creative skills are often undervalued in favour of more “practical” ones.
What’s a typical day in your life like?
I constantly juggle my roles as a lawyer, dancer, and teacher. A typical day for me begins at 5:30 a.m. I wake up to run (on most days) and prepare for work, whether I’m in the office or working from home.
On weekends, after having breakfast, I head to the dance studio to teach my “Slum to Stage” classes. Following that, I rehearse for any upcoming performances. After rehearsals, I go to the performance or shoot venue for stage or set rehearsals, pick up my costumes, and return to the event venue for final preparations.
After the performance, if I’ve been working with child dancers, I drop them off at their homes before making my way back to mine. I usually check my email for any pending deliverables, and if there’s nothing urgent, I prepare to wind down and go to bed by 10 p.m.
The challenging part of this routine is that it leaves almost no room for hanging out with friends. When I’m not working on a legal brief, I’m dancing. When I’m not dancing, I’m teaching. And when I’m not doing either of these, I’m sleeping. Yet, despite this packed schedule, I’ve learned that the balance between work and passion, between serving others and pursuing my artistic growth, is what keeps me going. This is the life I’ve chosen, and although it is demanding, it is also deeply fulfilling.
If you could remove three things (policies, workplace practices, or anything else) from the HR world, what would they be and why?
I’m not sure I would remove anything from my life, because everything I’ve been through—whether good or bad—is ultimately working for my growth and good. However, if there are experiences I would rather not have had, the first would be the stress of having to travel to another country for quality education or for better opportunities. Secondly, I would remove Amala from the list of foods.
Ehn? Amala?
No offence intended.
Thank you for being on Doing Life With, Emmanuel
Honoured to be featured.
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Many thanks to Emmanuel Osahor for having this conversation with us and answering all our questions – and swiftly too, we must add.
Do you love this content, have any feedback for us or want to be a BellaNaija Features contributor? We’d love to read from you. Shoot us an email: [email protected]. Join us on Saturday for the next episode!
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