Jamii in Kenya - a 2-week journey to Nairobi and Naivasha to connect artistic communities across oceans. Journey Journal:
In Nairobi, the Alliance Française is not only a place to learn and practice French but also a key artistic center that local artists of all art forms call home. When we met with Victor Nyataa and his colleagues from The Crony Productions, they shared with us that the Alliance Française was one of the two main spaces, along with the Kenyan National Theatre, for local theatre organizations to present their work to audiences.
The Crony Production is a successful, award-winning theatre company in Nairobi that produces work that directly speaks to people's hearts. With a large following, they produce work all year long, attracting full houses filled with audience laughter. When we met with Victor and his team in Nairobi, along with Sekoya’s leaders @nancy.muttai and @chelsea_guya, the sparkles of magic and connections were there, and we are already planning our first artistic collaboration in Nairobi for November 19th.
We were grateful to meet such talented artists as part of our "Baraza," a project supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, which aims to connect artistic communities in The Esplanade, Toronto, and Nairobi and Naivasha in Kenya.