[Image] When you watch Ngugi wa Miiri’s and Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s play, it’s really not hard to see why the government of the day (then) had it banned after just one performance.This show’s powerful message was definitely written against those in power or within close proximity to it.After more than a 30-minute wait following the failure of the stage’s curtain rail system at Kenya National Theatre, the show got on the way in the typical Stuart Nash-directed musical; thrilling from the start.RELATEDTalkingpoint: A worm’s-eye view of Indangasi vs Sicherman duel on NgugiWeekend Jan 09, 2021[Image]Of Ngugi, myths and facts as literature department turns 50Weekend Dec 11, 2020[Image]“I Will Marry When I want” is a story that almost has nothing to do with marriage, except for showing the dynamics of who a provider, protector and leader is while also talking to what different people perceive love is or what it means to be dutiful to those under your care.Kioi is a rich man who holds on to Christianity and looks to spread it to as many of his village mates as he can.However, his intentions are not for the good of his people but rather what this would translate into when he tries to use them and their lands for his own gain.Kioi is out to persuade Kigunda to join the Christian way in order to get married in church so that his family can be blessed. That, he says, is what’s standing in his way and rising out of poverty.Kioi and his wife Jesebel, and his partner Ndungire and his wife Hellen, seem to be accommodating the couple only when they are in agreement with what they are suggesting.However, they treat them as less than human when they hold a contrary opinion or seem not to be allured by the thought of quick and easy money.Sell outBut the heart of the matter is that Kioi and his partner want to sell out their people for pennies in order to get shares in the large multinationals that are looking to put up hope in the area.The music and dance interludes within the play give a deeper understanding of the cultural and colonial history of the Kikuyu; from the atrocities, the British armies and the home guards rained on them to the beauty of the practices of courtship and the dowry ceremonies back then.The emotional rollercoaster the show takes one through- from comedy to really tragic turns - made the standing ovation the cast got on the evening of Utamaduni Day so deserved.This was the third run of the show after two previous runs, one in May at the Kenya National Theatre and the other in July at Limuru (the town Wa Thiong’o and Wa Miiri’s play was staged on November 11, 1977, at Kamiriithu Community Education and Cultural Centre), but the performances are still getting full house attendances.Stuart Nash of Nairobi Performing Arts Studio wanted to do the play in 2020 and had even started rehearsals before Covid stopped everything.The Kikuyu original Kikuyu version of the play is not available in print, so they started working on the English translation of it.Later on, they got their hands on the original script “because it’s brown and has the original director’s notes on it” from someone who happened to know someone who was in the original play and printed it.“One of your colleagues, Margaretta wa Gacheru, had suggested that I look into it. The fact that it’s not been done for 30 years and written by Kenya’s most celebrated writer made it the obvious play to do. Even now, it’s relevant,” says Nash, stating that he was looking for his next project after having wrapped up “Sarafina” in 2019.“I Will Marry When I Want” was a challenge for him to do a musical different from what he was used to but, after having staged “Kigogo” with Caucasian Chalk Circle back in 2018, which was in Swahili, the English national was all for it, albeit scared a bit.Easy castStuart blocked the English version of the play and the actors carried the same into the English. The director said it was an easy cast for him. The actors only had to be good and also speak Kikuyu.Mwaura Bilal first came across the book in 2001 while in Class Seven.“I think it was written in the stars. When Stuart asked me to play Kigunda, it just spoke to me. About my character, my takeaway is that when things go wrong, we need to stop pointing fingers. Yes, there might be outside forces at work but we also need to be introspective and see where we went wrong first. We can’t just keep saying “They have done this to us” or “Why are you still doing this to us 50 years later?”,” says the actor.His character is a guy who holds dearly to the ideals of family and having a home. When that is threatened, he turns into something else, going haywire. He stands in the middle of modernity ad the traditional way of life; he’s in a hard place.Mwaura said he watched a clip where Ngugi wa Thiong’o thanked the cast for telling the story again and he felt goosebumps.“He went deep into acknowledging us and even the history of the play. It was wings under my wings. The show makes you wonder if we’re doing a timepiece or if it’s actually about now because it’s so relatable. This was a show that was originally done by farm labourers and that spirit is present,” he closes.Angel Waruinge’s performance as Jesebel is riveting. Angel has been a performing artiste since 2002, and she says stage acting is the love of her life.The 40-year-old actress had heard about the show but didn’t understand the depth of it. She said she got emotional during rehearsals because that’s when the story was being revealed to her, and she felt honoured to be part of this storytelling.Her character is married to Kioi, a rich but corrupt man, and the two are hypocritical Christians. Her social climb makes her ostracise the same people she came from.“She’s shady but she thinks she’s cool; ni wa mshaino. The beautiful part about this is it’s us; genuine, authentic stories written by people who experienced it. I’ve learnt that it is still the same script, different cast over the years,” she says.“The last time I was on stage before this show was 2016. TV is boring and lazy because it’s just you. When it comes to stage, you have to become a team. Even being a Kikuyu, I found some words too deep and hard to pronounce,” she said.The cast rounded off by Nice Githinji as Wangechi, Martin Kigondu as Gishamba, Victoria Gichora as Njoki, Duncan Murunyu as Ndugire, Diana Wamaitha as Hellen as the main cast among others in supporting roles.The are four shows at 2 pm and 6 pm each day this weekend. Today’s shows are all in English, while tomorrow’s 6 pm show will be in Kikuyu, bringing the curtains down on this run. Tickets are going for Sh1,600 at the gate. BY DAILY NATION
posted by Breaking Kenya news at 10:31 on 15 Oct 2022
"Evergreen Ngugi play “I Will Marry When I want” still pulling crowds 45 years later"
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