Image: MOSES MWANGI
On Friday last week, all roads led to the Oshwal Academy Junior High Auditorium for the official unveiling of “The Good, The Bad, and The Wolf" – A Family Puppet Theatre that was staged for the first time in Kenya.
The puppetry show brought together school-going kids, parents/guardians, and select members of the Fourth Estate – who were treated to a spectacular performance by the cast.
The show was a combination of live acting, singing, and dancing, creating a holistic combo for the whole family.
The show had been tailored for children - not just designed for them but for the whole family to take away something fun and positive.
During the show, Puppets spoke to children as they are a proven learning tool that helps children develop cognitive abilities and social-emotional skills.
“The Good, The Bad, and The Wolf" – had a message aimed at breaking stereotypes and creating room for different personalities and appreciating people as they truly are, and enabling space for everybody; good, bad, and everything in between.
The amazing puppet show was directed by Master Puppeteer, Kasia Mészáros, MA Drama & Puppetry Theatre.
Image: DENNIS MILIMO
The Friday show was officially opened by Zsolt Mészáros, Ambassador to Hungary.
Barbados High Commissioner William McDonald was also in attendance along with several other VIP guests and media houses.
The show was put together by Aperture Africa - an award-winning theatre production house in Kenya. It has been operational for the last 15 years.
Some of their productions staged include the Jungle Book, Robin Hood, and Cinderella musicals and comedies like "It Runs in the Family, Caught in the Net, and Run for your Wife.
Puppetry is an old, truly artistic form of theatre that creates so much messaging in a fun and entertaining way.
Here is the cast & crew for “The Good, The Bad, and The Wolf"
Doanna Owano – Narrator and Grandma
Image: DENNIS MILIMO
Doanna is a multidisciplinary creative based in Kenya. She is passionate about storytelling through performance, writing, and design.
She is a musical theatre enthusiast and enjoys singing, reading, and watching coming-of-age films by women about women and Korean dramas.
Andrew Tumbo – Wolf
Image: MOSES MWANGI
Tumbo is a creative Director and performer with a focus on music direction performances, composing, scrip writing, and teaching.
He is the founder of spellcast media Ke and is especially passionate about Afrocentric artistic expression and pioneering out-of-the-box forms of performance art.
Chandni Vaya – Little Red and Purple Pig
Image: MOSES MWANGI
A first-time puppetry theatre, Chandni enjoys all kinds of performing arts, from dance to acting and terrible singing.
Puppetry provides a unique opportunity to stimulate imagination, motor skill, understand emotions, and express ones strange human-ness.
It represents an invisible duality – a positive that frees the spirit, a negative that unveils the mind.
Hey, it is wild, simple yet complicated.
Bilal Wanjau – Salesman, Police officer, and Mr. Patel
Image: MOSES MWANGI
Bilal Idris is a 36-year-old professional Kenyan actor with an experience of 19 years in theatre and film.
He wears many hats in this production and does what he does best- makes everybody laugh.
Fedelis Kyalo – Blue Pig
Fedelis Kyalo is a puppetry artist, playwright, and director for television, community, and theatre.
He is the co-founder of Krystal puppet Theatre and is the author of “Tears by the River” which has toured globally.
He has an Honorary Diploma award from polish puppeteers Centre Polunima. He is currently VP of the UNIMA Africa Commission. Secretary UNIMA-Kenya, co-director at puppets254, and a senior member of the Kenya Institute of puppetry.
Image: MOSES MWANGI
Victor Otieno – Yellow Pig
Otieno is a freelance creative artist based in Nairobi. He has gained vast experience as a puppeteer boasting award-winning puppetry productions.
Victor is currently a puppeteer under the Kenya Institute of Puppet Theatre working to create puppet theatre and puppet video productions for sustainable solutions in society.
The Producers
A creative trio: Aperture- an award-winning theatre production house, Helen O’Grady Speech and Drama Academy our brand new kid on the block – CrEd international – a fully-fledged creative corporate education and training arm that has exciting drama techniques embedded in its learning.
Amar and Janita Desai are at the helm of this creative burst and are unstoppable.
The Director
A Professional actress with a master of Arts degree from the Aleksander Zelwerowicz State Theatre Academy in Warsaw, Poland.
For 8 years she has worked as an actress and a theatre instructor at Groteska theatre in Cracow, Poland.
Kasia performed in a large variety of shows, including puppet performances for children and musicals.
In 2016, Kasia directed a puppet performance in Kenya, “Tales of Freedom” engaging Kenyan, Polish, and Hungarian actors.
