It probably wasn’t the ideal of times for actor and singer Ken Aswani to take on another title- Director- as he steers the ship in Millaz Productions’ latest piece, License to Steal.
It is a journey that started when one afternoon after the second successful run of Millaz’s Backstreets, Aswani was nudged aside by a writer who pitched a story for a play he was writing to him. The kicker was that the writer, Sheldon Owinya, wanted Aswani to direct the play.
“I’m not ready yet” is the one answer Sheldon wasn’t going to take as he insisted on the same potential seen by other members of the Millaz team including another writer, Saumu Kombo, and the CEO Clare Wahome.
Tragedy would strike however and Sheldon Owinya, a brilliant thespian and the writer behind License to Steal, passed away on July 28.
Being the last of Sheldon Owinya’s works, Aswani now finds himself not only making a debut in directing but also honouring the works of a departed friend. He calls upon every Millaz fan and theatre enthusiast to make time to celebrate Sheldon Owinya’s impact on theatre arts.
For Aswani, the creative journey started in high school under the wing of revered theatre director, Xavier Jerry Nato, an encounter that fuelled the need to quench his thirst for theatre arts. That is exactly what he pursued after stepping foot on campus, collaborating with Emmanuel Chindia and Allan Lumumba and dubbing themselves, ‘Millaz’.
Xavier saw the need for the title to become an entity and after pulling some strings, Millaz Productions was born with Clare Wahome as the CEO. A home to Ken Aswani, Millaz played a huge role in honing his acting skills, but he had his eye locked on something else.
His fascination with how revered directors like Gilbert Lukalia and Carol ‘Coach’ Odongo work grew and he took it upon himself to learn some tricks and put them in his basket, paying attention to not only how directors execute their visions, but also how actors immerse themselves to a role.
License to Steal leans on the theme of deception. The lengths to which the deceiver can go and how much the deceived can take. It is the story of the Masifa family—Mr. Masifa, his wife Rachel, and their daughter Riziki— who are the epitome of business success and social prestige. Their celebration of Riziki’s milestone is abruptly interrupted by shocking news and the arrival of a powerful adversary. As hidden truths come to light, Mr Masifa must navigate a web of deceit and ambition, leading to a dramatic and explosive confrontation.
License to Steal goes on stage today, August 9, through to Sunday, August 11. Nyakua tikiti yako via the link TikoHub.co.ke
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