Unsettled
By JC Niala
Themes: Gender Violence, Colonialism & History, Racial & Ethnic Discrimination
Genre: Political Theatre
Key Scenes: Act Two, Scene One (3F, 2M); Act Two, Scene Two (1F, 2M); Act Two, Scene Five (1F, 1M)
Number of characters: 7 (5M, 2F)
Age recommendation: 12+ (reference to murder)
Country: Kenya
Original language: English
Description:
With the help of the younger Stephen, Mimi runs an inherited family business, the Cypress Café. It was once the heart of a town dominated by English Settlers near Mt. Kenya in post-colonial Kenya. When John’s wife is murdered, the townspeople are forced to confront the tensions that threaten the delicate fabric of their tenuous existence. These are captured in the gender violence, land issues and power relations of both black and white Kenyans living in, and returning to, the country.
Meanwhile, Ciku is involved in a new housing development in the rapidly growing town. Life in this development reveals the deeply-seated complexities and nuances of land ownership and access against the backdrop of historical injustice. Steering clear of categorisations of ‘good’ and ‘bad’, the play explores the decisions people make when their fraught co-existence with each other and with the land is at breaking point.
The first rehearsed reading took place in October 2017 at the University of Oxford.
+ DETAILS
Author: JC Niala
Original language: English
Publisher: Bloomsbury, 2019
World Premiere (in the Engl. lang.): University of Oxford, 2017
Education Pack Resource Writer: Alia Alzougbi
+ CHARACTERS
JOHN SPENCER, a Kenyan White man, second-generation ‘settler’ (also called Kenya Cowboys – he has a typical KC accent which has hints of its British origins but is slower and with an African lilt and peppered with Kiswahili words spoken with a British sounding accent), late fifties/early sixties.
STEPHEN, a Kenyan African man, late twenties, speaks excellent English with an easy to understand Kenyan accent.
MIMI, a Kenyan White woman, third-generation ‘settler’, KC accent, early forties.
CIKÚ, a Kenyan African diaspora woman, British accent, early forties.
YOUNG WHITE WOMAN, indeterminable European accent, twenties.
LINDA, a Kenyan White woman, second-generation ‘settler’, KC accent, late fifties/early sixties.
MARTHA, a British White woman, lived in Kenya for the last 40 years, British accent, early sixties.
+ PLAY TEXT BLURB
Part of Contemporary Plays by African Women (2019)
Unsettled by JC Niala (Kenya) deals with gender violence, land issues and relations of both black and white Kenyans living in, and returning to, the country.
Buy the play text here
+ REVIEWS
For Contemporary Plays by African Women: “A rare treasure chest of dynamic and challenging new plays. For theatre practitioners, this book offers diverse works with opportunities for interesting staging and sharp direction. For female actors, there is a selection of strong, unique and complex lead roles … For scholars these works are a rich source of material for critical reflection and debate.” – South African Theatre Journal
