Accra, Sept. 21, GNA – A Book of Condolence would be opened at the National Theatre on Monday, September 26 from 1000 hours to 1600 hours daily for the late Efo Kodjo Mawugbe, internationally acclaimed playwright.

An official at the Public Affairs Department of the National Theatre told Ghana News Agency in Accra on Wednesday that formal detailed funeral arrangements would be announced soon.

The late Mawugbe who was Director of the National Theatre, died last week at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital after a short illness where he had been on admission for some weeks.

Efo Mawugbe was renowned for his writing prowess in drama. He won the BBC's International Radio Playwriting Competition in 2009 with his play, “The Prison Graduates”. It was selected out of 12,000 entries across the world.

However, in recent years, he is most revered for his invaluable contribution to TV3’s popular beauty pageant reality show, ‘Ghana’s Most Beautiful’, where he had played the role of an astute judge, making significant criticisms and suggestions to project Ghana’s culture.

Efo Mawugbe, 57, was born on April 21, 1954 in Kumasi to Madam Comfort Tulasi, and the late Michael Ayivi Mawugbe, who both worked at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).

He attended Mawuli School, Ho, where he obtained his secondary education to the sixth form level.

At Mawuli School, Efo’s interest and talent in theatre drama began and he joined the school’s drama group.

His autobiography says in Form One, he played the role of Senchi in Efua Sutherland’s ‘Edufa’ and by Form Three he had succeeded in writing a play for his house, TROST House.

Efo Mawugbe gained admission into the University of Ghana where he studied Theatre Arts, majoring in playwriting from 1975 to 1978.

Later in 1991, he did a certificate course in senior management development at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA).

Efo Mawugbe further studied at the British Council, Glasgow and London, where he did certificated programmes in Theatre Management and Audience Development.

From 1979-1984, he served as a Senior Research Assistant - African Theatre at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (Centre for Cultural Studies) where he helped students in the developing and production of plays.

He has 19 plays to his credit. These include: "A Calabash of Blood" - Radio Drama - GBC in 1978, "Aluta Continua" - drama - produced for radio, stage and T.V. distributed in Africa by URTNA (1979) and in 1980, "The Unbending Branch" - Radio Drama (GBC).

Between 2001 and 2002, Efo Mawugbe was a part-time Assistant Lecturer (Playwriting) at the Theatre Arts Department of the University of Ghana, where he supervised final year students in playwriting.

He was survived by a wife and five children.