SANAA
THEATRE AWARDS FILLED WITH GOOD NEWS ABOUT HEALTH & CULTURAL WEALTH OF
KENYA THEATRE
By
Margaretta wa Gacheru (posted December 16th, 2016)
The 4th
edition of the Sanaa Theatre Awards came off without a hitch last Wednesday
night at Kenya National theatre apart from the Minister of Culture’s late arrival
(forgiven after Dr. Wario made a brief speech promising practical means of
promoting the Theatre) and George Orido’s exhaustive classification of potential
award winners which were more than 40 this year.
Offering so
many trophies was undoubtedly Orido’s effort to be all-inclusive, but for some
of us who prefer awards ceremonies that are short and sweet, one may wish to
ask Orido to edit his ceremony which went on until almost midnight.
Nonetheless,
the selection of awardees this year was a worthy reflection of the local
theatre scene. There might have a few gaps, but I would attribute that to the
production teams not bothering to contact the local media for promotion of
their shows.
The
overwhelming winner of awards this year was from Mombasa: nonagenarian Kuldip
Sondhai for his production, ‘Don Geronimo’
at The Little Theatre which won six
awards: for Best Production; Best Director, Hillary Namanje; Best Playwright,
Sondhai; Best Supporting Actress, Stephanie Masike; Best Play in English; and
Sondhai being one of the five to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. (The
other four were Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Wasambo Were,
Caroline Odongo and JPR
Ochieng Odero.) And if you count the Little Theatre Club of Mombasa’s winning
Most Improved Theatre Space (which Sondhai’s production enhanced), then that
makes seven awards that the BBC award winning playwright and his cast can
claim.
Best actor’s
award went to Maina Olwenya
for his role as the Somali ‘terrorist’ in Silvia
Cassini’s A Man Like You (which was also staged to appreciative audiences in
New York City) which also won for being the ‘Best Tragedy’.
Maina Olwenya as a Somali 'terrorist' interrogating a British diplomat (Tom Hardy)
Best actress
went June Gachui for her role in Three Fold Cord. This looked like a difficult
decision for the judges (who included George Orido, Sanaa awards founder, Dr
Fred Mbogo, senior lecturer at Moi University and Nicholas Moipei, Chairman of
Kenya Cultural Centre’s Board, among others), because June was up against
Bernice Nthenya of Heartstrings (below)
and Veronica Waceke (below)
as the leading lady in Gilb’art Production of Edufa.
In fact, the
number of outstanding women actors who surfaced in 2016 was formidable as in
the five we saw in “And then she said…” and Nyef Nyef Storytellers performing
Sheroes. But at least Nyef Nyef won the award for Best Production on Women’s
Rights and Gender-based Violence (the Maya Angelou Award) for A White Wedding
which was performed at the newly-devised Storymoja Stage.
Giving two
awards for Festival of Creative Arts’ performance of ‘Nuts+’, for Best
Production on Child Rights and Protection and Best Production on Reproductive
Rights was also an implicit awarding of women actresses since Helena Waithera (below left)
and Marianne Nungo (above, 2nd from left) were also outstanding in that show.
But so was
the whole cast of ‘Nuts+’ which is why FCA was smart to bring back the show
this weekend at Alliance Francaise.
In the
meantime, Eliud Abuto was again awarded best producer this year, not only for
his consistency of commitment to Kenyan theatre over the years, but also for
his courage to break out of FCA’s comedic mold to successfully stage a
seriously challenging script like Nuts+.
Another
category that was clearly not easy for the judges to decide was Best Supporting
Actor since 2016 was also a great year for guy actors. To my mind Joe Kinyua
could have been considered for best actor in the August Wilson classic ‘Fences’
at Phoenix Theatre as well as for best supporting actor in Martin Kigondu’s
Who’s Your Daddy?
But the
award went to Kenyatta University’s Irshad Abdullaziz for his role in
Euthanasia, a man also worthy of the win.
Thanks to
Orido’s substantive list of theatrical classifications, there were many more
award winners. Sammy Mwangi and Heartstrings tied for Best Director and My Fish
My Choice.
Jungle Book
won for Best Lighting and Sound while Tinga Tinga Tales won for Best Costuming
as well as for Best Musical Theatre.
Awards also
went to Jim Chuchu’s The Bones Remember for the Best Innovative Short Film on
Health, Youth and Behavior Change, Best Art and Culture TV magazine: The Trend,
Newspaper/Magazine: Business Daily Life and All-Time Supporting Institution:
still Alliance Francaise.
Even Primary
and Secondary Schools, Colleges and Universities got awards this year as did
one of the counties. But the jewel in the crown or the President Barack Obama Award
for most Dinguished Diaspora Award went to all four nominees, namely Lupito
Nyong’o, Edi Gategi, Odera Owiso and the amazing Moipei Quartet, three of whom
are studying overseas but happily came home for Christmas.
Happy
Holidays to them all!
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