Artists in limbo as Nakuru's main theatre remains shut a year later

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Nakuru Players Theatre, standing at the heart of Nakuru City, is a shadow of its former self, isolated and its fields overgrown with grass with only one guard manning the abandoned playhouse.

The gates are under lock and key and artists cannot access it. This follows a scuffle over alleged mismanagement of the facility. 

Graffiti demanding the reopening of the cinema hall portrays a clear anger of the artists who had been using the space to showcase their talents, make money and grow.

The playhouse that gained popularity in 2019, including staging Sarafina in October that year among other international arts, has been forgotten.

Being the only theatre within the county after the closure of three cinema halls where artists used to stage their performances, the helpless talents have been forced to work in isolation and makeshift ‘theatres’.

While the Players Theatre is a private members’ club, Nakuru County has been allocating money towards the renovation of the hub in its efforts to revive the growing creative sector. 

In the 2023-2024 financial year, the county government allocated Sh17 million to revamp the theatre and construct a recording studio.

“Sadly, there are no facilities where artists can stage their shows within the county yet this is an internationally recognized hub of creativity. We do not know how long the theatre will remain closed because of wrangles,” Jacob Endurance, a creative director, said.

A few kilometres away, youths have been forced to flock the streets of the city for video shooting, dance performances, plays and other content creations as an alternative means to being recognised.

Others who have been forced to hire old town halls for performances have had to combine the little coins they have to showcase their performances. They no longer make money.

The artists made an attempt to revive the theatre in September last year, including protesting inside it, clearing the bushes and slashing the grass, but the effort bore no fruit.

Eric Wanyama,  the chairman of the theatre’s board, says the playhouse was closed by trustees following leadership wrangles.

“Members complained of mismanagement. The trustees closed this place as they did a financial audit. We expected the closure to take a month but it extended. We are waiting for further instructions,” said Wanyama.

Vincent Maingi, a producer at Makini Arts, says Nakuru can no longer be described as a creative city because it no longer has a creative space.

Maingi regretted that millions of shillings and investment opportunities had been lost due to the closure.

“Every year the Creative Arts Spaces in Kenya (CASiK) brings projects to Nakuru. Two years ago they brought equipment worth over Sh1.5 million. Last year we got nothing and this year too,” said Maingi.

Tony Aswani, the chairman of Nakuru Actors Guild says it is tough for artists to create quality productions they used to do in the theatre.

Last week, residents, artists, the community and supporters of arts led by Evans Kimori petitioned the County Assembly to push for the reopening and renovation of the space.

The residents want the assembly to allocate the necessary budget and oversight support for reopening and maintaining of the theatre.

“The assembly should engage stakeholders, including local artists, in decision-making to ensure transparency and alignment with the interests of the creative sector,” read the petition.

Mr Kimori argued that the closure led to loss of a vital creative and learning space for artists and students who also missed out on set book performances and live theatre learning.

The petition added that youths lost a safe social and creative hub for developing talent and selling culture.

“The creative economy is one of the biggest income avenues for youths; performing artists, theatre practitioners, musicians, comedians, TikTok creators, live streamers, and digital content creators,”Kimori pointed out.

He called out the county government for allowing the place to go to waste while leaders wrangle, instead of taking charge of the situation for a better county.

The trustees have remained quiet on the reopening of the theatre. Our attempts to reach out to them were futile.

In November 2023, Unesco placed two cities; Nakuru and Port Louis in Mauritius, in the list of Most Creative Cities Network.

The two cities became the first in Eastern Africa to join the prestigious network following UNESCO’s recognition of their commitment to placing culture and creativity at the heart of their development.

In the Unesco listing, Nakuru is placed under the Craft and Folklore category.

However, artists from neighbouring countries say that Nakuru should put in place efforts to support the creative industry to maintain the status.

“East Africa is yet to generally appreciate the creative industry, which has huge potential. The artists are still struggling within our continent. More facilities should be put in place to support the industry,” Edward Kabuye, a director from Uganda said.