An oraturist who uses story in her work as an academic, artist and activist, Mshai Mwangola is based in Nairobi, Kenya. She holds a PhD in Performance Studies from Northwestern University (USA). Her thesis on Kenya’s “Uhuru Generation”, titled ‘Performing Our Stories, Performing OurSelves’, approaches the idea of a generational historical mission through the re-creation, invocation and facilitation of performance as a site of individual and communal reflection. Prior to this, she obtained an MCA (Masters of Creative Arts) from the School of Studies in the Creative Arts, University of Melbourne (Australia) and a Bachelor of Education (Hons) from Kenyatta University (Kenya). She is currently an African, African American and Diaspora Studies (AAAD Studies) Fellow at James Madison University; and a member of the Executive Committee of the Council of Development of Social Science Research in Africa.

Mwangola’s pedagogy, research and creative work is grounded in understanding performance as both the process and product of meaning-making. Her work is characterised by her practice of performance, and in particular indigenous and contemporary traditions of story-telling for the purpose of research, pedagogy and advocacy. In addition to her academic work, she is a founder-director of The Orature Collective, incorporating The Performance Collective; and is one of the co-founders of the intellectual platform, The Elepphant.info. Her current research project focuses on leso / kanga as one of the quintessential gendered performers of East African identity.