Poet and comedian extraordinary

Maclean Mbepula is no laughing matter

While Maclean is a masculine name in Malawi, there’s one female, versatile poetess in Lilongwe who is slowly carving a name in Malawi stand-up comedy.

“I got my name from my maternal grandmother. Her names were Maclean Liuma. People often do mistake me for a male, especially if they have never met me. I actually now love my name very much because it’s unique and compliments my quirkiness, I think,” she breaks it.

The 20-something year old poetess has an eccentric personality which births poetry that is often witty, humorous and quirky.

“My poetry comes from thoughts at a given time, but some of it has Christian themes, some of it are just musings or fictitious imaginations for situations; be it political, social or cultural and some of it is just playfulness on my part. I do not usually sit down and say, ‘right, let me write a poem now’.

“Usually, what happens is something just pops into my head and I have to write down those lines or else they are gone forever, which can be very annoying. I have a very active mind and there is absolutely no end to this process but I enjoy it. I enjoy the writing of poetry and my process is very natural, very free form as it is never forced, it just flows, sometimes it does not get finished and I have a lot of unfinished work. However, over time, they are completed,” the loud poetess explains.

She adds: “Also, I write what I have inside and need to get out, I don’t force matters because I don’t want it to ever become a chore. I also enjoy reciting at a good performance and the rehearsal after the event. For some reason, I enjoy my own practicing after an event but I don’t know why.”

Maclean launched her career in 2007 through Wapi, an event by British Council led by Q Malewezi’s Abstrak Beats. It was instrumental in being a platform for her to share her work because the organisers allowed anyone to perform any piece of art.

She recalls: “The encouragement I got from friends and other people during and after my recitals and performances served to make me want to get better at it, share more and write more and perform more. But I have been in art for as long as I can remember. I come from mainly artistic family; my mother is a tailor and designer, and my brother is a visual artist. We grew up being taught how to knit, croquette and saw, among others.

“As for writing my content, I began mainly with songs, interspersed with poetry and short story writing. I started that when I was barely a teenager. I started performing poetry at school, Kamuzu Academy in Form 1, but I didn’t work on growing my talent until 2007.”

Fast forward to 2012, Maclean was part of the poets that made the Pillow Talk in Lilongwe.

She performed at various events at universities, youth entertainment shows, Christian events, churches and other events at Madsoc Theatre and at private functions.

An active member of the Living Room Poetry Club in Lilongwe, which meets every Wednesday, she has also performed at big events such as DiverCity I and II, Women of Distinction 2012 and Lake of Stars 2013 and the Anne Kansiime’s Comedy Show 2014 organised Qoncept Creative.

She also co-performed with Duncan McNicholl on a two-person show at Madsoc Theatre.

At the Kansiime show, Maclean unveiled the other side of her art; stand-up comedy mixed that with poetry.

“I think this was inevitable. Often, I get to recite at the Livingroom Poetry club and I noticed that some of the things I had written and performed could not honestly be called poetry. People appeared to enjoy it and sometimes my colleagues would find my offerings funny, which I had thought it was and it turned out that it was actually comedy.

“It was incredibly natural, the manner into which it came about it was almost like devolving or evolving. Also, the comments people had given me over the years, some friends encouraged me to go into comedy but I never took it seriously. However, again I enjoy this type of comedy and I feel at ease when the audience understands what I’m saying and we’re sharing a moment and imagining things together,” she muses.

There is great humour in everyday life and it is worth noting that as a child, Maclean used to be called Miss Bean, as in the feminine character of Mr Bean.

Her audience has been an eclectic bunch from all across the board; everyday Malawians like herself to dignitaries, students, church gathering and the expat community. Yet did not do any art training as she is an ICT specialist by profession.

“I am a self-employed ICT specialist mainly doing website design and development, my business is called Shekinah Invest Ltd. I studied Computer Studies at the National College of Information Technology, Lilongwe campus majoring in computer programming and then in the UK. I am currently upgrading in my field of expertise at Malawi Assemblies of God University.

Meanwhile, Maclean has been approached to perform at this year’s Lake of Stars, just waiting to confirm as well as a show with Mwezi Arts at Madsoc Theatre.

“Other than these two coming up shows, people should look out for a poetry television show that I agreed to be hosting on Channel for All Nations channel and a comedy programme hosted by me on another television station. All of these things are pending confirmation and finalisation. So, fingers crossed, as they say,” she said sounding optimistic.

Locally, the artist says she is motivated by Living Room Poetry Club. She bragged: “I am so bizarrely blessed with a host of incredibly poets at the club. I get to enjoy their offers and get inspired and supported and encouraged and schooled. Also the variety of their offerings and the difference in styles and performances just help make me more creative. Some of my favourite poets are Q Malewezi, Ed Kenamu, Chris Msosa, Neil Nayar, Tresor Mputu aka Menes and various others. Watching all the living room poets recite is like eating my favourite bar of chocolate only difference is, it’s better because it’s calorie free.”

Internationally, Maclean’s favourite poet is Rudy Fransisco. South Africa’s Trevor Noah is her favourite stand-up comedian, followed by Kevin Hart, Bill Cosby and Sinbad.

Despite a couple of problems, she says Malawian comedy and poetry has a bright future as her personal goals will positively impact on the country’s art.

“I think stand-up comedy is growing but there are not enough platforms for people to hone their skills at. For example, the Living Room Poetry club is essentially for poetry.

Comedians need something for them where they can learn from each other and develop into their own.