Afri-Diamond reborn with Maswanku
Mar 25, 2008
IF in church circles Easter refers to resurrection, then church and theatre are twins that were separated at birth. The many theories of theatre being on its deathbed were put to the test over the weekend, with the resurrection of Afri-Diamonds.
By Emmanuel Ssejjengo
IF in church circles Easter refers to resurrection, then church and theatre are twins that were separated at birth. The many theories of theatre being on its deathbed were put to the test over the weekend, with the resurrection of Afri-Diamonds.
The group had split into Afri-talent and Diamonds’ Ensemble about ten years back. They started off from where they kicked off, with a revival of probably the group’s last major success Maswanku at Bat Valley Theatre.
The profound play, well scripted and acted with a lot of spirit, does not make bold references to topical issues. But the group has combined content and expression to reveal human fears about posterity.
The cheers at the introduction of each character even after 30 minutes of the play expressed much of the audience’s joy that comes with this renewed unity.
The old actors like Kato Lubwama, Abbey Mukiibi, Mariam Ndagire were comfortably expressive in their roles although newer members like Herbert Nsubuga were not satisfactory.
Ruth Kalibbala and Jennifer Kabanda were well cast as twins- a credit to Abbey Mukiibi’s casting skills.
That the directors of both sub-groups created an expressive costume is a plus.
The play runs for three more weekends at Bat Valley Theatre. Thereafter, Afri-talent and Diamonds’ Ensemble will go back to running individual projects.
For the fans, Maswanku was an Easter present they will remember for a long time to come.
IF in church circles Easter refers to resurrection, then church and theatre are twins that were separated at birth. The many theories of theatre being on its deathbed were put to the test over the weekend, with the resurrection of Afri-Diamonds.
The group had split into Afri-talent and Diamonds’ Ensemble about ten years back. They started off from where they kicked off, with a revival of probably the group’s last major success Maswanku at Bat Valley Theatre.
The profound play, well scripted and acted with a lot of spirit, does not make bold references to topical issues. But the group has combined content and expression to reveal human fears about posterity.
The cheers at the introduction of each character even after 30 minutes of the play expressed much of the audience’s joy that comes with this renewed unity.
The old actors like Kato Lubwama, Abbey Mukiibi, Mariam Ndagire were comfortably expressive in their roles although newer members like Herbert Nsubuga were not satisfactory.
Ruth Kalibbala and Jennifer Kabanda were well cast as twins- a credit to Abbey Mukiibi’s casting skills.
That the directors of both sub-groups created an expressive costume is a plus.
The play runs for three more weekends at Bat Valley Theatre. Thereafter, Afri-talent and Diamonds’ Ensemble will go back to running individual projects.
For the fans, Maswanku was an Easter present they will remember for a long time to come.