Security beefed up in Nakuru as national drama festival kicks off
Mount Kenya University students act in a scene from a movie titled My Heart Will Go On as part of the preparations for the Kenya National Drama Festivals, which start on April 7, 2015 in Nakuru County. Security has been heightened as the festivals start. PHOTO | ANTHONY NJAGI | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- National chairman Chokera Kahura and executive secretary Sirengo Khaemba said all teams are expected to travel on April 6 and arrive before 5pm in Nakuru.
- The festivals will be hosted at Lions Primary School, Afraha High School, Lohana Hall, Melvin Jones and Menengai High School.
- The event will feature, for the third year running, a film festival, which will feature movies and documentaries shot by participating institutions.
- Mount Kenya University is the event’s title sponsor.
Security will be beefed up during 56th edition of the Kenya National Drama Festivals, organisers announced Sunday.
This follows incidents of terrorist attacks, the latest one being a Garissa University College, where 148 people were killed.
National chairman Chokera Kahura and executive secretary Sirengo Khaemba said all teams are expected to travel on April 6 and arrive before 5pm in Nakuru.
The two said security during the festival will be managed by all units police in Nakuru County.
The festivals, which will be hosted at Lions Primary School, Afraha High School, Lohana Hall, Melvin Jones and Menengai High School, kick off on April 7 and ends on April 15.
The prestigious festival, which is the biggest of its kind in Kenya, features schools, colleges and universities in a talent search that seeks to expose and nurture creative arts.
The event features performances in various genres: stage plays, stage dances, oral narratives, stand-up comedy and solo and choral verses.
MOVIES AND DOCUMENTARIES
The event will also feature, for the third year running, a film festival, which will feature movies and documentaries shot by participating institutions.
The film genre will feature several offerings, with students seeking to prove that they are ready to hit the big screen.
The genre has also attracted the attention of leading television stations, which are keen to air more local content.
“The film category has attracted a lot of attention. We aim to promote the films produced in this festival to be aired on national television for all Kenyans to enjoy,” says Mr Khaemba.
Among the participating institutions in the movie category is Kiamwangi Day Secondary School in Gatundu South, Kiambu County.
The school is presenting a movie titled The Ultimate Move, and a documentary called Taming Road Carnage.
Mount Kenya University is the event’s title sponsor.
Besides sponsoring the festival, the university will also pick the best actor and actress to emerge in the festival to feature in its upcoming film, The Last Result.
“We aim to promote home-grown talent to compete on the international stage. Lupita Nyong’o, among others, has proved we can do it,” says MKU chairman and founder Simon Gicharu.
