Reflecting on a profound experience - Sundance Institute Writers' Lab in Salt Lake City.

This year I came back home a night shy of the tragic fire that engulfed our Airport after almost a month of interacting with creatives at the Sundance Resort in Salt Lake City.There was no time to miss America or even encourage the jet lag since my production projects badly required my attention.Now four months after the dust has settled,I begin to nostalgically and critically compare the Sundance Institute experience to our own East African productions.The muse decided it should be in form of a letter of appreciation to the organizers.

Dear Sundance Institute East Africa team ....

This email had long been written in my heart and my mind but I came back home into production duties of our TV show. I want to really thank you for the opportunity granted to me as one of the East African directors who were able to meet together for a second time and also network with other practitioners outside Africa as we observed and participated in creation of magical work. I'm glad that you are still supporting this kind of work.

I have a long list of experiences that were beneficial to my artistic knowledge.The ones that stood out were observing the relationship between the playwright and director in developing a story.I realized how helpful it was to the writers to "hear" themselves. The talented directors had a unique opportunity (directors rarely work with writers in East Africa ) to dive deep into the playwright's artistic pool and even re - discover what the playwright "meant" but was not able to articulate.These incidents were magical and eye-watering.

I'm still impressed by the extremely high level of organization that was maintained through out the workshops. From the time a wonderful and kind volunteer assistant came to pick me up at the airport , to the running of the rehearsals and even making sure we retired comfortably in our designated rooms. I'm still amazed at how the leadership was able to manage the crew so efficiently and still be able to make everybody feel cared for and significant in the success of the project.

After (and due to) The workshop at Utah:

I have made friendly and professional contacts with some of the artistes from the workshop.First , the East African directors, who are now a family.We try our best to keep in touch and encourage each other in our individual projects , and with other great participants that I met at the mountain. I guess I just wanted to say thank you from the bottom of my heart :-)


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Philip replied:

Thank you so much for sharing what you learned at Sundance and for your gratitude. As I’ve said before, it works both ways. All of us at Sundance are grateful for your participation, for getting to know you as an artist and person, and also for your lovely warmth and generosity. This bond between the people of our Institute and the other artists you have met will only continue and grow. Sending much love to you,

Philip

Philip Himberg, Artistic Director, Sundance Institute Theatre Program

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Roberta also replied:

Dear Rogers, Thank you very much for taking the time to write down these valuable thoughts. I'm glad to hear that the connections you made at Sundance are continuing to develop. We're all looking forward to hearing your updates!
It's a joy to have you as part of the Sundance family. Your contributions continue to enrich our program and the experiences of everyone involved. Thank you! Roberta

Roberta Levitow

Co-founder and co-director, Theatre Without Borders

IGNITE GUMZO-Fun club for kenyan workers.

Need a break after a day of meetings and proposals? We'll get you back to the madness later but meanwhile, join us for our regular 1st Thursday of the month evening conversations.


FREE and open to all, our talks will revolve around a range of lively topics affecting professionals and organizations alike.

You can stage a skit with your colleagues.
Sing about an outrageous news story.
Engage others in discussing the latest world crisis is how you unwind, why not?

Ignite Gumzo is an informal session to escape the merciless clutches of your demanding job and a chance to network with other professionals, our evening presents a chance to explore passions that you ditched after college.

It will be light, easy and casual and anyone can participate.

Come along and let your guard down and don't forget to have FUN!!

Alien in my own country

This morning I was listening to a radio link. My first thoughts were of the American accented girl, whose voice was eloquent and hyped up. I smiled wryly to myself as I thought about how western culture has been so engrained into Kenyan culture even when it comes to the dialect we use when we speak English. Having an American accent is not only a cool thing but nowadays it is associated with the bourgeois class, the upper echelons of Kenyan society apparently should be speaking like a yank. With this in mind then those who speak English with a Kenyan accent are regarded as either strange or from an inferior background. Of course it is not said but it is felt.

I remember about two decades ago when I was a kid and I could watch people practice the American accent either by cramming lines from a movie or a popular rap. I must say even I am guilty of this in the past and man, could I pull it off! Little did I know that years later the urban culture and indeed that of the whole East African region will be determined by old movies, cd’s and magazines cheaply dumped or pirated into our country from the west.

These media products penetrate individual and collective domains of African lives, impregnate their tastes, their reflexes, their modes of thought and even everyday decision making, manipulating people to conform to capitalist requirements and to superfluous or illusory needs.

The Rugged Priest Premiere

Last night was the opening of the 5th Annual Kenya International Film Festival. The film shown was The Rugged Priest, the story of Father John Kaizer an inspirational Catholic Priest who stood up for human rights in Kenya.

The film was a refreshing advance in the Kenyan Film Industry. The actors and storyline were sensational. The picture looks good (including stunts and action). Well done to the cast and crew.

Make sure you attend the Kenya Film Festival. There is going to be something for everyone so click on the link to the KIFF website for the schedule.

Informal interview...nice overview

As far as interviews go, this one had to be the most informal but probably the most comfortable.

Ugandan-based-Australian journalist Laurie May and I met for a chat a few months back for Studio Edirisa.

It's a pretty good interview about My Moving Home, worth having a read of. Click here to check it out!