Veteran Playwright David Mulwa Dies at 80

Veteran Kenyan playwright, actor and writer David Mulwa has died, his family and members of the literary community have confirmed.

Mulwa passed away on December 5 at the age of 80 while undergoing treatment for cardiac arrest at a hospital in Nairobi.

Mulwa was one of Kenya’s most respected theatre figures and a prolific writer whose work shaped drama and literature in the country for decades. He authored several well-known plays, including Inheritance, Clean Hands, Redemption, Master and Servant, Daraja, Bahati’s Love Nest and We Come in Peace.

He also wrote other notable works such as Buriani, Ukame and Mkimbizi (co-authored with A. S. Yahya), as well as published titles including Glasshouses, Crocodile’s Jaw, Katende Says “No”, and Flee, Mama Flee.

In addition to writing, Mulwa appeared in film and television productions, among them Eyes of a Witness and Dangerous Affair.

Born in 1945 in Mukaa, Machakos County, Mulwa studied at the University of Nairobi before proceeding to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he earned a Master’s degree in Theatre through a Rockefeller Foundation scholarship.

He began his teaching career at Mukaa High School and Kangundo High School between 1968 and 1970. He later worked as a teaching assistant at Ohio University before returning to Kenya in the early 1980s.

Mulwa later joined Kenyatta University, where he became a key figure at the School of Visual and Performing Arts. During his time there, he mentored and trained generations of theatre practitioners across the country.

He was also a long-serving adjudicator at the Kenya Drama Festivals from 1978 and served on the governing council of the Kenya Cultural Centre.

In recognition of his contribution to the arts, Mulwa received several awards, including the Kalasha Award for Lifetime Achievement and a Theatre Lifetime Achievement award. Kenyatta University’s governing council also honoured him with a Hero’s Award.