For seasoned thespian Martin Kigondu, April has been nothing short of frenetic.
He has been everywhere, in a good way, like a man running on a diesel tank engine. When we speak, he is just getting off the high of directing one of the most jam-packed shows in the first quarter of the year, Too Early For Birds; Wangari Maathai which was sold out days before staging.
Not a man to take a rest and celebrate his victories, he is back on-stage next weekend starring in a one-hander The Uselessness of a Professor, and directing another play, Chords of Discord, all happening at the Alliance Française on the same day.
Speaking about directing Too Early for Birds: Wangari Maathai, he says, “Directing is always my first love, especially if the story is good. This was the second time working on the production.
The first time, I was a cast member in Too Early for Bird: Tom Mboya.
This time I didn’t need much convincing because the woman reminds me of my grandmother so much. I felt like my grandmother was contributing to me being a part of the show. I have photos of my grandmother who looks almost exactly like Wangari Maathai.
Both of them died at 71, both were activists in the 60s when they could have easily gone on with their lives. It was a good reminder of the strength of matriarchs, which both women share.”
The Uselessness of a Professor in which Kigondu plays a frustrated academician, was initially given to another actor who pulled out because of a clashing calendar and inadvertently, Kigondu was tasked by his crew to steer the production.
A one-hander is a theatrical performance featuring a single actor, also known as a solo, monologue play, or monodrama.
He is no stranger to demands of one-handers. In fact, Kigondu is widely credited with popularising the format in Kenya’s theatre scene, particularly through his production Supernova. But the experience came at a cost.
“It had heavy themes as much as it was entertaining. The theme of grief was a bit too much for me, and after doing it for a year I had to take a break,” he says. On the rise of one-handers, Kigondu says.
“I would like to think my theatre company, Prevail, played a role in triggering the rise of one-handers post-Covid. After our nationwide tour of Supernova, more productions started emerging.
Back in the day, it felt like only seasoned thespians could successfully stage a one-hander. But the generation behind us is more daring. We’re seeing younger performers take the risk.
That said, it’s a scary space. You have to be extremely prepared.”
Still, he notes that experience often shows. “I have attended many one-handers, but the ones that I have enjoyed the most are the ones from the more mature performers because it takes effort and experience to pull one successfully.”
Thematically, The Uselessness of a Professor is different. While it carries undertones of darkness, it is not as emotionally heavy as Supernova, which is a welcome breather for Kigondu.
Written by Dr Fred Mbogo, the play revolves around the same familiar themes for the playwright, following works like They That Have Missing Marks, which interrogate the absurdities of university life in Kenya.
This latest production highlights the quiet frustrations of academia, stripping away the prestige often associated with professorship.
“As an outsider, one would expect the top professors in the academic world to be living good lives, but this is not the case. The play attacks the fallacy of the title. We follow the life of Professor Ephantus Njogu around a theme we call the Frustration Square where lecturers meet and open up to each other.”
In the play, lecturers are on 40 days of their planned 67-day strike and the Professor, played by Martin Kigondu, has been asked to speak to the lecturer’s union on what it feels to be a professor during the period. During the talk, we get to see the title from a vulnerable side, and the façade of prestige that accompanies it.
Dr Mbogo who is also an experienced lecturer, offers an insider’s perspective into the academia career that is bursting at the seams.
