Performance Art in Kenya

Live and action art in Kenya.

Sanaa ya utendaji, Sanaa ya moja kwa moja na ya vitendo nchini Kenya.

Artist and Performance Art Groups

Other Information and Literature

• African Digital Art
• Between Us – live performance & installation by Miriam Syowia Kyambi – Between Us is an experimental multi media production by Miriam Syowia Kyambi incorporating live art performance, installation, photography and video taking place over four weeks in Nairobi at The GoDown Art Centre.
• Kuona Artists Collective – Kuona Artists Collective stands as one of Nairobi’s most dynamic spaces for contemporary visual arts, offering visitors an authentic glimpse into Kenya’s thriving creative scene. Located on Dennis Pritt Road along Likoni Lane, this artist-run collective has carved out a distinctive niche in East Africa’s art landscape by championing emerging and established artists working across diverse mediums. What sets Kuona apart from traditional galleries is its dual role as both an exhibition space and a working studio environment, where the creative process itself becomes part of the visitor experience.
• The GoDown Arts Centre (Performing & Visual Arts Centre, est. 2003) East Africa’s largest multidisciplinary arts space, founded by Joy Mboya; converted warehouse hosting performance, exhibitions, and gigs. Site of Syowia Kyambi’s 2014 performance collaboration with James Mweu and Kunja Dance Theatre.
• Kenya Cultural Centre / Kenya National Theatre — Performing Arts Conference Established 2022; brings together performing artists, academics, and government/development stakeholders. First edition theme: “Decolonization, intercultural collaboration and social disruption.”
• Gerschultz, J. C. (2013). Navigating Nairobi: Artists in a Workshop System. In S. Kasfir, & T. Förster (Eds.), African Art and Agency in the Workshop (pp. 207-229). Indiana University Press.— traces Nairobi’s artist-collective infrastructure (Kuona Trust, Banana Hill Art Studio) since the 1990s.
• Muya, P. & Onyinge, T., New Media, Meme Culture and Political Satire: The Role of Performative Art in Political Activism in Kenya,” Sage Journals (2026) — This study examines the impact of performatives and evolving social media typology in shaping political activism among Kenya’s Generation Z (Gen Z) movement during the 2024 anti-tax law protests.
• Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, Enactments of power: The politics of performance space, TDR (1997), foundational text on Kenyan performance-as-resistance.
• Waswa, D., On Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s political theatre: An artist’s conflict with the State over performance space,(PDF) Kenya Scholars and Studies Association (KESSA) (2021) — foundational text on Kenyan performance-as-resistance.
• TPAAE — Traditional and Contemporary Art in East Africa – An active EU-funded research partnership between Kenyatta University, Pwani University, the National Museum in Szczecin (Poland), and the University of Macerata (Italy). Explicitly researches “the notion of performance and performativity in Contemporary Art practices in Kenya and East Africa,” alongside traditional Kenyan theatre, puppetry, and the increasing role of women in traditional performance.