Kenya: Sarafina! musical goes to Nakuru

The musical is directed by Stuart Nash and produced by Nairobi Performing Studios. Sarafina! brings back the dark memories of apartheid and the physical and psychological wounds it inflicted on South Africa's majority.

The musical was originally scripted by South African musician, director and theatre producer Bongeni Ngema in 1986 and made into a film starring Whoopi Goldberg, Miriam Makeba, Leleti Khumalo and John Kani in 1992. The musical was restaged around the world, including in Kenya in 2003 and 2018. 

This year, Sarafina! has been staged 12 times at the Kenya National Theatre (KNT) in Nairobi between 18 and 28 July.

Nakuru county governor Lee Kinyanjui says the weeklong staging of the play is meant to promote the region as a performing arts destination.

“The county gender, culture and social services department has an elaborate database of aspiring artists who spend time at the Players Theatre,” he said. “It’s time to bring people back to the theatres by staging stories they can closely relate to. We are committed to marketing Nakuru as a movie destination.

“People from the Coast, Western, Nyanza and Central parts of Kenya, for example, have unique historical experiences, legends and folklore that can find their way into theatres. The same applies to individuals from Kenya, Uganda or Tanzania; they all have distinct experiences based on their cultural beliefs and practices.”

Nakuru County gender, culture and social services chief officer Tumme Abduba said: “We are promoting theatre with local content to enable performers to earn a living. We also want to ensure the Players Theatre attracts even tourists who visit Nakuru. In Europe, there are live performances every other evening across cities that make tourists spend another night. That’s the Nakuru we want.”

Last year, the Nakuru government signed a memorandum of understanding with Kabarak University aimed at nurturing musical talent and various art forms at the Nakuru Players Theatre.