Curtains fall on a legend: Alex Mukulu, father of Ugandan protest theatre, dies at 72
Uganda is waking up to heartbreaking news: veteran playwright, actor, director and musician Alex Mukulu has died at the age of 72, bringing to a close a career spanning more than four decades that helped define modern Ugandan theatre.
Word of his passing is breaking this Saturday, August 15, 2026, and spreading rapidly across social media and broadcast circles, with tributes arriving faster than official confirmation can keep pace. Early reports describe Mukulu as leaving behind "a decades-long legacy of theatre, satire and cultural storytelling."
Among the first tributes: "Rest in Peace Alex Mukulu, your contribution to the art industry will forever be remembered." Another read: "Heartbreaking news of the demise of renown playwright and author Alex Mukulu. A sad Saturday. Rest in Peace."
This is a developing story. No official statement on the cause of death or funeral arrangements has yet been released by Mukulu's family or Uganda's National Theatre. Updates will follow as they emerge.
A life in theatre
Alex Mukulu Kabangala was born in 1954 in Misebe, Ssingo County, Buganda, to Paulo Kayizi Lugaizi and Victoria Ndagire, daughter of Prince Yokana Kimbugwe of Lungujja. He attended Kololo Secondary School before studying Film and Drama at Makerere University in Kampala, training that would launch one of the most consequential careers in East African theatre.
For over 40 years, Mukulu used the stage as a tool of social and political commentary, earning a reputation across Uganda as the "father of protest theatre." His plays were known for their sharp wit, unflinching critique of power, and deep engagement with Uganda's post-independence struggles.
He began writing and directing in 1977 with "Muzukulu wa Kabangala," and went on to produce a prolific body of work through the late 1970s and 1980s, including "Springs of Tears," "The Cigarette," "Opera Bakisimba," "The Celebrity," "I Killed the Archbishop," and "Gwanga Mujje."
His defining work came in 1991 with "30 Years of Bananas," an analytical drama dissecting the social, economic and political costs of Uganda's history since independence. The play was later published as a book by Oxford University Press in 1993 and remains a landmark of Ugandan dramatic literature. Other major works include "Wounds of Africa" (1988) and "The Guest of Honour" (1994), along with more recent productions "A Good Muganda Case" (2021) and "The People's President" (2022).
International recognition
Mukulu's talent reached a global stage in 2007, when he staged "Journey to Self-Realization" at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kampala. The moving musical narrative, tracing Uganda's past, reportedly earned him a standing ovation from Queen Elizabeth II and the assembled heads of state and government.
A celebrated return
After stepping back from the Ugandan stage in 2007 (he said he had "outgrown" the National Theatre as audiences drifted toward technology and away from live performance), Mukulu made a celebrated comeback in March 2024. His production "Kulumbisi and Kulunkalu," an African adaptation of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, was staged free of charge at the National Theatre in Kampala. Mukulu said he offered it without charge specifically to help revive Uganda's theatre-going culture. Buganda's Katikkiro, Charles Peter Mayiga, attended the production and publicly praised Mukulu's decades-long contribution to the arts.
Mukulu also lent his expertise to television, serving as a judge on the talent competition "Yolesa Ekitone," where he evaluated dance, comedy and musical performances.
Legacy
Tonight, as tributes continue to pour in from across Uganda's entertainment and cultural circles, Alex Mukulu is being remembered not just as a playwright, but as a chronicler of the Ugandan condition, a man who spent his life turning the nation's triumphs, contradictions and struggles into unforgettable theatre.
He is survived by his family and an artistic legacy that shaped generations of Ugandan storytellers.
Rest in peace, Alex Mukulu (1954 to 2026).
