‘Three Sisters’ Set To Interrogate Religion

For centuries, Christianity has been the cornerstone faith for millions of believers across the world.

Alas, insecure and unsuspecting churchgoers have long fallen under the spell of ‘false prophets’. Fake churches pop up like acne on a teenager’s poor face and names such as Shepherd Bushiri and Alph Lukau have made headlines in the media, and not for good reasons.

Stories such as these inspired newcomer playwright Bret Kamwi to script ‘Three Sisters’ – a story set to interrogate religion and hold up a mirror to blind believers of televangelists.

“That inspired me to write this story about a prophet and it grew into something that deals with societal problems,” says Kamwi.

The Katima Mulilo-born thespian is no stranger to Namibian theatre, having acted in various productions. However, he wanted to tell his own stories and on his third submission to the National Theatre of Namibia’s call-outs for Theatre Zone scripts, he was finally successful.

He enjoys writing in order to conjure up conversation by leaving his audience with open endings that need thought to decipher. As a storyteller, Kamwi notes that his passion is out of his hands. “I don’t really think I have a choice. Like most story-tellers, it just comes to you. I like extravagant stories. I make sure there is a clear message the audience can understand while being entertained.”

With roots in Katima Mulilo, Kamwi notes that stories from different walks of life are important to tell. “I think it’s good when diverse stories come from people who are not necessarily as represented as they need to be.”

‘Three Sisters’ follows the story of Chaze (Xavierie M), who sets out on a journey to uncover deceit.

Xavierie describes her character as rebellious and “in a battle between who she is and what people tell her to be”.

“You discover things about yourself,” she says, emphasi-sing the depths she has to go to understand and portray her character flawlessly.

The ever suave and eloquent Melgisedek Nehemia will be portraying the prophet. He has featured in various productions including ‘3 Women and You’, ‘A Raisin in the Sun’, ‘The First Year’, ‘Grease’ and ‘Brooding with Beckett’, and notes that Africa is rife with tales of prophets such as Jedidiah, so the story should be relatable and entertaining.

Completing the cast are Diana Master, Taylo Mannetti, Vaja Tjipueja, Kaarina Nambinga, Penny Heelu and Michael Beukes, who are set to deliver an exciting performance, sure to ruffle some religious feathers.

– @JonathanSasha on social media

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