It was an evening of giggles and fun as comedy lovers were treated to a myriad of jokes and music on the second last day of the annual comedy festival, SekaFest.
Despite the heavy rains on Saturday, which affected the turn up at the Private Sector Federation (PSF) grounds in Gikondo, comedians from the region and musicians Weasel of the famous Radio and Weasel duo, Charly na Nina, and Sintex, were able to cheer up those who turned up.
Comedians kept revellers laughing and cheering throughout their performances. Emmanuel Kwizera
Organised and hosted by homeboy Arthur Nkusi, this year’s SekaFest brought together some of the best comedians in the region and the continent which started with Michael Sengazi’s special comedy session dubbed, "Did you Just say Sex?” on March 24 at Century Cinema followed by Comedy on the bus from March 25 -29.
The Saturday show at Gikondo Expo Grounds had a slow start after the heavy afternoon downpour, having been scheduled to start at 6pm but would only start at 7:48 pm, after a reasonable number of people occupied the front seats.
Madrat & Chiko from Uganda on stage. Emmanuel Kwizera
Arthur Nkusi, whose outfit Arthur Nation organised the festival, came on the stage clad in all black from head to toe, and kicked off the event with some jokes but also took time to thank the revelers who attended the show.
He apologised for the delayed start, but assured the audience that they will have a good time.
"I want to apologise for the delay but as you can all see, the rain made it difficult for us to start on time. Never in my entire life have I prayed so much like today, praying for the rain to go away,” he told people who were eagerly waiting for the comedy to start.
Few minutes later, he invited the host for the night on stage, Alex Muhangi from Uganda, who cracked a few jokes before he called on his fellow countrymen including Teacher Mpamire, Madrat and Chiko, Agnes Akite and Jajja Bruce who literally made people laugh until they cried.
While Muhangi, and Teacher Mpamire are not new to Rwandan comedy lovers, the others were performing for the first time in Rwanda and indeed those who attended got value for money, particularly when Jajja Bruce pulled out his funny dance moves to compare music from the past and present.
Ugandan comedian, Teacher Mpamire (with a mic), joins the crowd during his performance at the annual SekaFest, in Gikondo at the expo grounds on Saturday.
The Saturday show was also graced by Kenyan comedian Eddie Butita and several Rwandan celebrities who turned up to support Arthur’s efforts. Revellers appreciated the jokes and laughed from start to finish.
Singer Weasel on the stage during Seka Live comedy show in Kigali. Emmanuel Kwizera.
There were performances too from up and coming singer Sintex, Charly na Nina, who performed but left the revelers asking for more.
The highlight of the night however was the last performance by Weasel, the other half of the popular duo Radio and Weasel.
Born Douglas Mayanja, Weasel stepped on stage wearing a black and white T-shirt, black jeans and white sneakers and kicked off a performance that lasted for almost half an hour.
Despite losing Radio, the other half of the dynamic duo at the beginning of February last year, Weasel has continued to keep the group’s music alive and the audience did not disappoint, singing along with him from start to finish.
He performed some of the songs that made the group popular including ‘Bread and Butter’, ‘Ngenda Maaso’, ‘Nyumbani’ and others which revoked memories and got the revelers not only singing along but also standing up in a show of support for the singer who has never recovered from the loss of colleague.
When he was done with the performance, Arthur Nkusi came back on the stage and thanked whoever turned up and urged them to show up on the final day of Seka Fest, which featured continental comedy powerhouses including Nigerian star Basketmouth, Salvado, Kenya’s Eric Omondi and Chipukeezy.
Charly & Nina duo performing.
"I am happy the show went well despite the rain. The comedians cracked great jokes. I have never laughed this much all my life. I got value for my money,” a one Phiona Mutoni said.
editorial@newtimesrwanda.com