The 2026 Kenya International Theatre Festival (KITFEST) concluded its 12-day run with a colourful closing ceremony celebrating theatre, music and cultural diversity.
The 11th edition of the festival, which ran from November 4 to 15 at the Kenya National Theatre in Nairobi, brought together local and international performers for a programme of drama, dance, music, poetry and cultural exchange.
Held under the theme “Reimagining Theatre: A New Decade of Creative Frontiers,” this year’s festival featured productions from Kenya, India, Portugal, Mexico and China, providing a platform for artists to share different theatrical traditions and approaches to storytelling.
In addition to crossing borders, the festival also sought to broaden and make theatre widely available.
During the festival’s launch, KITFest Trust founder and chairperson Kevin Kimani Kahuro said the organisers wanted to bring theatre to children from Kibera, Kawangware and Korogocho, as well as children in homes and members of the blind and deaf communities.
“This year we are taking theatre to people who have never stepped into a theatre,” Kahuro said.
Before the closing ceremony, which took place at 7 PM, the riveting play, “Echoes from the Lake”, brought to life the Luo folk epic of Nyamgodho Wuod Obare at 2 PM through physical theatre, music and acrobatics.