Murmures

Renowned musician Billy Kaunda is back in the limelight but this time not in music circles but in theatre as he has come up with a play for Kwathu Drama Group titled Aneneri.

Kwathu Director, Eric Mabedi, revealed this on Sunday soon after the popular Blantyre-based drama group restaged their production Kulira Kwa Ana at Blantyre Cultural Centre.

Kulira Kwa Ana is the group’s fourth production and was the last production for the year 2014. It was first premiered in Lilongwe on Christmas and then other performances followed in Liwonde and Mulanje before dating Blantyre Cultural Centre.

“There are people who missed the performance in December so we thought of restaging it in Zomba and then today (Sunday) at Blantyre Cultural Centre. We are satisfied with the turnout and fans in Blantyre have always supported us. Now we will be going back to Lilongwe and then we have a new play coming which was written by two people Charles Mphoka and Billy Kaunda,” said Mabedi.

He said Kaunda and Mphoka came together to create the production set to be premiered in late April or early May.

“Having turned 35 years this year we need to give more to Malawians and so people should expect this play titled Aneneri,” he said.

Mphoka said Aneneri was hatched by Kaunda and then he has only played the part of restructuring the story and that it was all ready to be sampled by Malawians.

“Billy Kaunda came up with the story and I have just fine tuned it but it’s a good story and I have to thank him for coming out,” said Mphoka, who is one of the veteran actors in Kwathu and has written several plays for the group.

Coming to the performance, people braved a chilly weather on Sunday afternoon to watch the play and despite having another poetry show at Bullets FC just a few kilometers from Blantyre Cultural Centre, the audience was impressive.

Just like during its premier, many people interviewed randomly hailed Kwathu for what they described as a mature and educative production which tackles day to day issues.

With their simplicity stage, Kulira kwa Ana, which was written and directed by Eric Mabedi, centres on the story of Blessings played by Mphoka, who impregnates Mervis played by Linda Chatha and yet she has a fiancée by the name of Nora starred by Emma Chikwembeya.

Running away from responsibility and fearing for the worst, Blessings gives Mervis drugs to abort the pregnancy but Mervis afraid of losing her life refuses. This forces Blessings to call off the relationship.

Mervis battles with the pregnancy on her on but sooner falls in love with a man by the name of Lameck Mahamala(Penemulungu Banda), who promises to take care of the pregnancy.

The two later engage traditionally in a ceremony which is well portrayed by Kwathu and attracted the audiences’ attention. A son by the name of Nyengo(Moses Mandebvu) is born followed by a girl Stella(Rennie Banda).

Meanwhile Nora and Blessings also get married but Nora is barren and this is confirmed by medical experts. This ends up being a very big problem for Blessings, who is in need of a child.

It is from here that Blessings decides to get back his son Nyengo, who is now over 18 years. With Nyengo’s step father dead, he never knew his biological father was Blessings.

But truth catches up with Blessings as Nyengo, who is a lawyer knows the truth that his father gave his mother drugs to abort. How then is he looking for a son, who he wanted, killed?

“How many children have been killed by women and men out there because of abortion? There are just so many and so that’s why we thought of tackling the issue,” said Mabedi.

Other actors starring in the play include Evans Mbewe, Enifa Chiwaya, Neria Chosalawa and Mussa Penoh.