ARINZÉ KENE: A NIGERIAN-BRITISH STAGE GENIUS

Arinzé Mokwe Kene is a Nigerian-born British actor and playwright. He was born in the year 1987 in Lagos, Nigeria. By the age of 4, he relocated to Hackney, London. Kene’s father was a taxi driver. While growing up, he was bullied and it encouraged him to take kickboxing lessons. When he turned 16, he started his amateur kickboxing career and went on to win two national championships. He quit kickboxing at 21 years old and went on to pursue an acting career. He spent his gap year road-tripping as lead vocalist in a jazz band, and nurturing his hobby: acting. He went on to university studying Physiotherapy but dropped out after only two months to pursue acting full time.

Kene began his acting career in theatre, and he has appeared in several productions on stage. He made his debut in acting by the year 2010 with the play “God’s Property” which he wrote and performed in. He has also appeared in other notable productions, including “Little Boy Jesus”, “Misty”, and “One night in Miami”. In addition to the actor’s work in theatre, he has also acted in films and TV shows. He made his film debut in 2016 with “The Pass”, which he also wrote it, and he has appeared in other movies, including “Been So Long” and “The Last Tree”. He has appeared in shows like “Our Girl”, “Crazy head”, and “I May Destroy You” all showing on tv. Kene’s breakout show came in 2018, when “Misty” transferred from the “Bush Theatre” to “Trafalgar Studios”. The one-man show combined drama, music and spoken word to dramatize daily life in London. After years of hard work, he took the lead role in the world premiere of “Get up, Stand up! The Bob Marley Story” at the Lyric Theatre in 2021.

Kene has been nominated for several awards for his work in theatre. In 2011, he was nominated for the “Olivier Award” for his performance in “Little Baby Jesus”, and in 2019, he was nominated for the “Evening Standard Theatre Award” for his performance in “Death of a Salesman”. He won the “Critics Theatre Award” for Most Promising Playwright in 2011 for “God’s Property”.

Arinzé is a very talented Nigerian that uses his skills to contribute a lot in the British theatre and movie industry. He represents both countries with flying colours. Aside being into acting, Kene also is a socio-activist who has contributed a lot via his own small means. He gathered a huge fortune to his name from his career as an actor, playwright, and screenwriter.

Delia Nyadi