03- Impact on HIV: Kenyan Youth Take the Stage to Challenge HIV/AIDS Myths and Stigma

An HIV/AIDS theater program has spread throughout Kenya during the past five years, growing from 35 youth theater groups to more than 270 and reaching over 400,000 people with performances that stimulate thought-provoking discussions about the epidemic. . . Above the low, monotonous hum of the fan from a bakery in Mwandoni, a low-income residential area in the Kenyan coastal town of Mombasa, the clear, youthful voice of a soloist cuts through the dusty neighborhood and instantly transforms the scene into a jamboree of song and dance.. . Dancing in pairs, a dozen young men and women respond in chorus. Their feet raise the dust as the dancers form a ring around the soloist and two drummers. Dressed in sisal costumes over bright yellow T-shirts, the dancers gyrate their hips, shake their shoulders and move on in step to the rhythm of the drums.. . It is a vigorous dance, traditionally sung in thanksgiving for a good harvest. But today the youthful dancers are celebrating something else: a life has been saved.. . "The words in the song have been changed," said Susan Abiero, one of the dancers. "It tells of a young man who has contracted HIV and is about to commit suicide. The priest prevails upon him to change his mind, and we’re rejoicing.". . In the original setting, a merry audience would have joined the dance. Today ...

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