Mara Menzies is an award-winning performance storyteller and author.
Her storytelling production ‘Blood and Gold’ explores the legacy of colonialism and slavery through myth, legend and fantasy. It won the coveted Stage award at the Edinburgh Fringe 2022 for Acting Excellence, and Mara’s novel of the same name won the Scottish Saltire Society Book of Fiction award 2022.
Mara draws on her rich dual Kenyan and Scottish cultural heritage to create stories that explore our deepest fears, joys, loves, jealousies, passions and mysteries. She finds the truths about humanity in stories and has shared them in over 27 countries.
PRIVATE COMMISSIONS
She is one of a select group of narrative artists who travels the world, working with organisations to create bespoke stories that inform, inspire and entertain.
CHILDREN
Mara’s journey started with young children and when she can she enjoys sharing the magic of stories with little people. Her 2 children inspire her and she has self-published 2 books – ‘Koko the Crocodile’ and ‘Starbird’, a picture book inspired by a line in a Ben Okri novel. She also created the first African fashion design sketchbook. She has trained teachers around the world in how to incorporate storytelling into the curriculum.
WRITING
Mara is an award-winning author with her YA debut novel ‘Blood and Gold’ winning Saltire Society’s Book of Fiction 2022. Her stories have been featured on BBC Radio Scotland and BBC Radio 4 including ‘The Poet and the Echo’. She writes for MOSAIC and is currently working on her next novel.
UWANJA WA NDOTO (Field of Dreams)
Inspired by how Scotland uses its stories, Mara is the founder of social enterprise ‘Uwanja wa Ndoto’ (Field of Dreams), where on the site of a 180-acre baobab forest in Kilifi County at the Kenyan coast, she is creating a unique heritage trail built on the pillars of celebrating the Natural Environment, Community and Culture. Instagram: @uwanjawandoto
