OPINION: Drama at the Festival: The Donkey Way

"Look at this picture, our reflection of life it is. Look at this picture, again, a loving hate it is..." emotional Lisa from Chongoria Girls Boarding Primary School utters as the judges' bell rings, pointing at a donkey sculpture placed at the centre stage with two red jerricans of water.

 "...who littered the floor, Punda, donkey you... some donkeys haven’t finished my assignments..." Lisa continues, recounting how the donkey's name is used in a negative way, even in schools, in her solo verse.

I'm seated close enough to the stage, an arm's length from the adjudicators, so close that I could give them a pat on the back for the amazing work they are doing. This stage never ceased to give every time the curtains rolled, leaving us, the audience, on the verge of shedding tears or breaking out in laughter; mostly, we did, in fact, laugh our lungs out.

It's the 62nd edition of the Kenya Drama and Film Festival, hosted in the land of opportunities, Embu County. It's my umpteenth time in Embu. Unlike most times I have visited the county, this time, I'm welcomed by chilly weather, with drizzles gently kissing the ground.

It's an event characterized by chilly mornings and scorching sun during the day, as elated students stroll in and out of Kangaru School and Embu University, the host institutions situated just opposite each other.

Why "Drama at the Festival"? The Donkey Way?

I settled on the title "Drama at the Festival" as a handpicked title from a play done by the Kenya Institute of Mass Communication, a title that I thought was synonymous with the amazing talents that I witnessed, total drama at the festival.

As for "The Donkey Way," that's because of the solo verse performed by Lisa from Chogoria Girls Boarding Primary School, which I'm about to delve into, as a reason why our Drama and film are a key tool for positive change in society.

I met Lisa on Tuesday, dressed in her shade of orange school uniform, with a cream collar and white socks. She had braids that blended black and white, which she beautifully styled in a pussy-cat style. She seemed to be a school-going girl of few words.

Her teacher introduced her to me after we met with the teacher on Monday, who told me they have a solo verse on donkey welfare. The category is sponsored at the Kenya Drama and Film Festival by Brooke East Africa, an animal welfare charity organization dealing with the welfare of working equines.

I had a sit-down with her that very Tuesday, as she told me about "Darling Debra," the name of her solo verse. Debra was her donkey, so close to a Zebra, the donkey's cousin.

As we held a conversation with her, Lisa tells me about how donkeys are often mistreated and how she hopes that the public would ensure that the donkeys feel good; she foreshadows how the crowd would be moved by her piece, come Thursday.

It's Thursday, and Lisa is set to be the second act on stage after the lunch break. I had to be back early, which explains why I'm seated close enough to the stage, an arm's length from the adjudicators. The curtains come down as the first acts after lunch exits.

It's 20 minutes past 2 pm, the curtains roll, revealing Lisa. She is wearing a yellow costume, seated on the set-up seat a few meters from the donkey sculpture, in an almost statue-like mode as she waits for the bell to ring, and soon it does.

"Look at this picture, our reflection of life it is....” Lisa begins.

The crowd goes dead silent as Lisa explains the challenges faced by the African donkey, from beatings, overload, lack of medical attention, and poor harnessing, despite playing a role in paying school fees for the kids.

“... Despite her input on my education, darling Debra stays hungry and thirsty, drinks dirty water if lucky...

“I raise my voice to all. In her defense against offense, she suffers quietly watched by us, she wears under our monitor. Darling Debra sleeps in the cold, without shelter...” Lisa says as she moves across the stage, with the audience watching on.

“...Darling Debra now walks with an un-proportional stomach, never been attended to medically, full of worms, ticks, and wounds, with tears rolling uncontrollably, embracing torments by day, horrendously by night. I issue a rallying cry for my darling Debra, as I donate my pillow, donate my blanket, to make her night warm, and I call upon you to make her bedroom...”

At this point, I had to scan around and see the audience, who seemed to agree with Lisa, word by word.

The audience rattled in applause as the curtains rolled down, as Lisa concluded with, "...My darling Debra must be helped, from every burdening chore that slowly kills her, and moderate her chores, so that when tired she can rest, when hungry she can be fed, when sick she can be attended to, and make our loving bond strong, for her delivery success, her responsibility is real, and bring her smile. My smile, our smile, Darling Debra, Lisa Kinyaa, a Chogoria Girls presentation. See you...."

The role of Drama in positive change in society

As Lisa exited, and as the hundreds of seated audience members applauded, there is no doubt that Drama and Film festivals, as well as Music festivals, play a significant role in shaping society. There is a need for the content from both to be made open to the public, as there is much to gain from the pieces.

From cultural dances, comedies, modern dances, spoken word, Choral Verses, among others, lessons were being passed on topics such as animal welfare, the importance of education, different cultures, among many others. The audiences were learning a piece at a time!

The writer, Stephen Kiprop, is an Animal Welfare Enthusiast and Digital Communications Specialist.