The 97th Kenya National Music & Cultural Festival will come to an end on Tuesday, December 10, after a week of performances at Taita Taveta National Polytechnic in Voi town.
Colleges and state agencies were among those who staged performances that included plays, dances and cultural exhibitions.
The cultural festival, which began on December 2, will be officially closed by Taita Taveta Governor Andrew Mwadime on Tuesday.
According to organisers, all hotels in Voi were fully booked, forcing the rest to seek accommodation in Wundanyi and Mwatate towns. The festival is supported by the Taita Taveta County Government and organised by the Ministry of Culture and Heritage.
The winners will showcase their talents at the Bomas of Kenya on Wednesday, December 11 in an event to be hosted by the State Department of Culture, Arts and Heritage led by PS Ummi Bashir.
Nandolia Cultural Group from Bungoma County presents Bukusu traditional cultural dance during the Kenya National Music and Cultural Festival at Taita Taveta National Polytechnic Voi on December 7 2024.
Photo credit: Anthony Njagi | Nation Media Group
Among the teams that presented high-quality cultural performances were Ekisil Kide (Turkana), Sifa Melodies (Kakamega), Kenyatta University (Nairobi), KMTC (Nakuru and Eldoret), Makueni County Choir, Taita Taveta County Choir and the Arts Group, Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Uni of Science and Technology, Ojai Group, Sisto Cultural Group (Uasin Gishu), Caxtone Wanjala (Kakamega), Ruth Wambua (Makueni), Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company, Kemsa Choir, KICD Choir and Nowen Media Institute.
The festival also featured cultural exhibitions of traditional food and drinks, traditional medicine, African and traditional attire as well as modelling to showcase the different traditional dresses of the participating counties.
Kenya Cultural Centre, Nairobi celebrates after winning the Original Composition category during the Kenya National Music Cultural Festival at Taita Taveta National Polytechnic Voi on December 8, 2024.
Photo credit: Anthony Njagi | Nation Media Group
The film hall has also grown tremendously with 300 participating teams including international submissions from Egypt, Morocco and the USA.
The festival has attracted partners who believe that cultural exchange is an integral part of economic growth and cohesion such as the Sports and Arts Fund, PEPSI, National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC), Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development, Kenya Film School and Farmers Choice.
NCIC Deputy Director Killian Nyambu emphasised the need for such festivals as they promote integration and cohesion through cultural exchange performances and displays.
Speaking at Taita Taveta National Polytechnic where the festival has been running for the past eight days, the Director of Culture in the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Heritage Dr Kiprop Lagat announced that for the first time in the history of the festival, teams will be given cash prizes at the winners' concert to be hosted by PS Ummi Bashir. Mr Lagat who was flanked by Kenya Music & Cultural Festival Chairperson Prof Emily Akuno and committee member Patrick Ngere, said this will be done to ensure that the creative economy can be a source of income for the youth.
On Monday, Kenyatta University (KU) showcased its theatrical excellence with five captivating plays.
Kenyatta University presents its play Echoes of Machismo during the National Music and Culture Festival at Taita Taveta National Polytechnic on December 7, 2024.
Photo credit: Anthony Njagi Nation Media Group
They staged Timmonah Daisy's One-Woman Play , a compelling exploration of the paradox faced by young women living with uterine fibroids. The play tackled the social stigma and misconceptions surrounding the condition.
KU also staged a play which explores the paradox of free condoms versus the commodification of sanitary pads. Their other play, Echoes of Machismo , explored how toxic masculinity perpetuates gender-based violence.
In KU’s play, The Last Spear of Nandi depicted the life of Koitalel arap Samoei, the revered leader of the Nandi people. It explored his resistance to British colonial forces and delved into the internal and external conflicts of his time.
Nowen Media Institute staged the play Argument with God . In this play, a community, led by Emmanuel, is reluctant to allow their bright daughter to go to university for fear of moral decay.
They reprimand Nyambura to think of an alternative career for fear that she might end up like Muthoni, (Whitney Indosio), a victim of immoral behaviour who is pressured by Sabina Joy, Joan Dickson to abandon her moral upbringing leading to her suicidal end.
Bunyore Skylight Theatre Group performs The Last Lough during the Kenya National Music and Cultural Festival at Taita Taveta National Polytechnic in Voi on December 7, 2024.
Photo credit: Anthony Njagi | Nation Media Group
Written and directed by Daniel Najoli, the play is hooked on the contemporary challenges that today's college and university students face, from lack of money to using orthodox means to get cheap money that is rooted in all forms of evil.
The community suffers greatly as the implications of how Nyambura died in desolation from the very moral foundations she had been taught in her upbringing become the snares to her grave.
Nowen Media Institute also performed a solo verse, pantomime, narrative, comedy and news reading that led to 25 other presentations. Their performances were produced by Bernard Nyanje.
