APOCRYPHER: UNTOLD STORIES & HIDDEN TRUTHS READY FOR REVEAL

Apocrypher in Kisumu

My name is George Nyakune, though within many theatre circles I am fondly known as Apocrypher — a name that, to me, reflects the untold stories and hidden truths that art continuously seeks to reveal. I am an actor, writer, certified director, and producer, shaped profoundly through my journey with NBOMTI.

Before encountering NBO MTI, I considered myself merely a director passionate, yes, but still limited in vision and artistic understanding. In December 2025, I attended one of the most transformative directing workshops facilitated by the insightful and deeply inspiring Martin Kigondu. Through his teachings, I began to perceive art not simply as performance, but as language, philosophy, and responsibility. His perspective altered my entire approach to directing. I found myself understanding actors more intimately, communicating stories more truthfully, and staging productions with greater emotional and intellectual depth.

As my journey unfolded, I later encountered Kimuyu Gathoni through another NBO MTI workshop on producing. Before then, I had always viewed production as a distant technical process, separate from the artistic soul of theatre. However, her facilitation bridged the gap between creative vision and practical realization. She illuminated the delicate art of mobilizing resources, organizing people, and transforming imagination into living performance. It was through this experience that I fully understood that producing is not separate from storytelling, it is the architecture that allows stories to breathe.

NBO MTI alumni in a group work session

Empowered by these experiences, I staged my first production, True Edge of Love and My Pieces of Poetry, followed by Beyond Pillow Talk. By EXTREME BRAINS EMPIRE. Both productions explored the painful and urgent realities surrounding Gender-Based Violence, using theatre as a mirror through which society could confront its wounds and question its silences.

Currently, I concluded another enriching artistic session under the guidance of Nyokabi Macharia, a creative whose work and presence I have admired for a long time. Her mentorship has further ignited within me an unrelenting hunger for artistic exploration. She has inspired many of us to see art everywhere; in movement, in memory, in pain, in everyday life and to use every material available to us in the pursuit of authentic storytelling.

My journey with NBO MTI has been nothing short of transformational. It unlocked a padlock that had long confined my creative potential. Through every workshop, every mentor, and every encounter, I have discovered not only the artist I wish to become, but also the responsibility that comes with creating meaningful work.

Now that the doors have opened, I no longer wish to stand outside looking in. I wish to continue growing, learning, creating, and contributing within the NBO MTI community, a space that has already profoundly shaped the artist and human being I am becoming.

Written by George Nyakune, NBO MTI alumni