By Margaretta wa Gacheru (written September 18, 2022)
Journal of Orina’s
Men of Ambition Part 1 came back to Kenya National Theatre last weekend after
winning accolades at the Kenya Theatre Awards and being featured at the Kenya International
Theatre Festival as well.
Coming back refreshed and
reckoning that several cast members had to change, the show was something of a
full-dress-rehearsal for their appearing next week at the Alexandria Theatre
Festival in Egypt.
The storyline is still the
same. It’s unfortunately one familiar to many Kenyans. It’s all about rivalry for
power and a family divided over who will reap the spoils after their wealthy
father dies.
The stakes are high since
the dad built an empire stretching from the coast to the lake. He also had
indicated that among his children, one of which is adopted, he’d picked his
first born, Clifford to take charge of the empire once he was gone.
Yet when we meet the
family, their emotions are raw and intense. The family matriarch (Mary
Kamanthe) serves as a sort of narrator, letting us know that she had just come
from burying her spouse when she hears that Clifford has been murdered in the
house. There were only four on hand at the time, so all of them are suspects
who have motives for eliminating the House of Radin’s future CEO.
To the majority, the most
likely killer is Duke (Brian Orina) since he’s unpleasantly arrogant and made
it clear more than once that he didn’t believe Clifford was fit to be Boss.
Even his mom believes he
did it. So does his half-sister Vanessa (Lorna Lomi) , and the family’s solicitor
Esquire (Dennis Kinyanjui).
Aware that he’s already
been convicted in their minds, Duke also can’t look for outside support since
no one, not even he, wants the shareholders to know about Clifford’s death just
yet.
The family agrees to interrogate
the issue in the morning. But Duke cannot wait. He wakes the others up at 3am
and insists he be the first to interrogate the other three.
As it turns out, he’s
correct. They all believe he killed his brother to obtain the family wealth. It’s
a believable charge since Duke has made it clear he believes he’s the only
family member who’s fit to run the House of Radin successfully.
Duke is especially rude
about women, holding a deeply misogynistic point of view. It’s certainly not one
that respects women getting anywhere near to power. He insults both his mom and
step sister who suggests she had a special relationship with the old man.
In any case, no one has
any substantial evidence to support Duke’s guilt. There’s only emotional
opinions and hearsay.
It is only Duke who has
heaps of allegations against the other three.
For instance, he knows his
mom was stealing funds from his dad, the implication being she might have even
bumped him off for his wealth. The dad was aware of her dishonesty and was
getting ready to oust her from the family, according to Duke. That’s when we
learn how cruel her husband was, beating her every night for years, yet she
stuck with it for reasons only she knew.
The family solicitor,
Esquire, was also sure to be sacked, says Duke, since the boss had found him
incompetent and was soon to be taking action against him too.
The step sister, Vanessa
had never been Duke’s friend. Yet the boss welcomed her in and taught her a
great deal about how to manage the House of Radin. Duke’s disgust of Vanessa is
tainted by his chauvinistic distaste for strong, resourceful women who are
stepping out of line and ‘pretending’ they have the resources to handle the reins
of power.
Ultimately, the vote is
taken and Duke is not only voted the probable murderer of Clifford. His mother
also disowns him for life, banishing him forever from the House of Radin.
Orina may not have foreseen
the public outcry at the end of Men of Ambition after he had left us
with a cliffhanger. At the last moment of the play, we are left watching Vanessa
quickly claiming the chairman’s seat with the Matriarch and the solicitor
standing on either side of her as if they are ready to serve their new CEO,
Chair of the House of Radin obediently.
It's a startling end that
left us wanting to know how Vanessa would do as the company’s new CEO. And so,
Part 2 was conceived, apparently as an afterthought.
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