Mau teachers prepare for drama festival
President Uhuru Kenyatta congratulates six-year-old Emily Wanjiru during the Kenya National Drama Festivals finalist concert at State Lodge, Sagana. PHOTO | PSCU
What you need to know:
The National Drama Festival is an annual festival that gathers pupils and students from early childhood, primary, secondary, colleges and university in a creative arts competition.
This year’s theme is ‘Enhancing Social Responsibility for National Development’ and the national competition will be held in Nakuru County from April 5 to 16, 2015.
Unlike its sister festival, the Kenya Music Festival, the drama festival does not have any private sector sponsors.
On a recent hot, dusty morning, hundreds of teachers gathered at the Reformed Church of East Africa guest house in Eldoret town.
Unlike three weeks back, the teachers neither carried placards nor chanted ‘mapambano;’ instead, they carried notebooks and pens, all set for the Mau Region Drama Festival Workshop.
The workshop, held on of February 5, 2015, brought together teachers from eight counties — Uasin Gishu, Nakuru, Narok, Elgeyo Marakwet, Baringo, Nandi, Kericho and Bomet.
The three-day workshop, intended to equip trainers with basic skills for the schools drama festivals, saw professionals coach on scripting, acting and production. Among the items discussed were, the play, the dramatised verse, the narrative, film, mime, stand-up comedy, modern dance, ECD items and adjudication.
The Mau regional secretary for drama, Mr Humphrey Omwaka, praised the huge attendance by teachers and trainers.
“The attendees will own the 2015 theme and transfer it to the grassroots. Moreover, that many teachers have attended this years’ regional workshop shows that more school principals, college heads and teachers are buying into the idea of extra-curricular activities ,” said Omwaka, who teaches Kiswahili at Moi Forces, Lanet.
Another attendee, the Baringo County regional secretary, Mr Jeck Obare, was happy that all the genres in the Kenya National Drama Festival curriculum were discussed.
I am happy I learnt so much. The only bit that was rather hard for me to grasp was film creation, which I found quite technical.”
Film is one of the categories recently introduced in the drama festival to keep up with modern trends in technology. The other new areas are modern dance category and stand-up comedy.
Also, the ministry of Education will announce the annual theme.
The National Drama Festival is an annual festival that gathers pupils and students from early childhood, primary, secondary, colleges and university in a creative arts competition.
This year’s theme is ‘Enhancing Social Responsibility for National Development’ and the national competition will be held in Nakuru County from April 5 to 16, 2015.
Unlike its sister festival, the Kenya Music Festival, the drama festival does not have any private sector sponsors.
