September plays capture the true picture of the Kenyan story

The last two weekends of September saw two plays stand out for their messages that were true to the Kenyan society. One touched on the issue of depression and its relation to suicide, while the other dealt with corruption from the point of those who get involved in or find themselves caught in the murk.

“’night, Mother” is a two-woman play by American playwright Marsha Norman. The play won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play. It is a sombre play about Thelma (Julisa Rowe) and her daughter Jessie (Rachel Kostrna), on the night that Jessie has made up her mind to end her life.

A collaboration of Artists in Christian Testimony (ACT) Kenya and Sanifu Productions, “‘night, Mother” sees the mother and daughter have open conversations for the first time, only because Thelma comes to the realisation that she will lose Jessie.

Without soundtracks or interludes throughout the entire period of the play at “Ukumbi Mdogo” at Kenya Cultural Centre, Thelma tries to give Jessie all the reasons she should give life a chance while the daughter explains why she feels like she is at the end of her wits after suffering depression for more than ten years.

The play was Rachel’s idea for closing her internship at ACT Kenya under Julisa, having graduated from Southern Oregon University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts and previously worked as a professional actor at Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

Julisa is the director at ACT Kenya, a mission that allows artist to use their gifts in spreading the gospel through evangelisms, outreach, and social justice through theatre, music and film.

“I studied the play in university, while taking a class on female playwrights, and I loved it. When Julisa and I started talking about what plays we could do, it’s what I thought of because it’s so well written,” says Rachel.

SUICIDE

The story happens in real time. With her suicide already put on the table in the first few moments of the play, the desperation and vulnerability from Thelma is played out, as she two tries to have as normal a conversation with Jessie as this dark ending draws ever near by the minute.

The play opens up the audience’s eyes to what depression could do to a person who doesn’t carry what people would perceive to be the regular symptoms of the disease. Those who seem “normal” until it’s too late. And making people with suicidal tendencies see the devastation they would be leaving behind; the “end of their misery” usually being the begin of misery for those they leave behind.

“Someone said she got home, locked herself in the room, and said she was going to restrategise her decision to rethink her suicidal thoughts. Another person said they would tell their stories as part of their healing and coping with depression. Others have started looking at people around them differently, with more compassion to what they are going through,” said Julisa.

“The Money that made Him Poor” looked at corruption and greed in the Kenyan society. Staged at Louis Leakey Auditorium at Nairobi National Museum, the play followed a family business that has been run for so long, but is now being dwarfed by new businesses plying dirty.

WB (Noah Kovola) is a young man who has moved to Nairobi and is working in his uncle’s company M Enterprises. The uncle, Sam Mwende (Benson Ochung’o), has been running the company diligently and by the book for decades, when he puts WB as his second in command.

However, WB’s mother (Mwache Lucy), thinks her son is not getting his just dues despite bringing business worth millions.

The set of circumstances is further complicated by WB’s love interest, Cynthia (Anne Mwaura), who keeps whispering in his ear how he could make so much more money by cutting a few corners to get kickbacks through dubious tendering in collaboration with Melvin (Sean Andrews).

With all this pressure on him to be a “man” and take his life in his hands, WB has to find a way to go behind his uncle’s back.

This play had multiple settings, noise effects and soundtracks to express and emphasise the different scenarios that were being portrayed on stage.