KLII
2025 MCA Chicago
Live sound collage


KLII exorcises the ghost of King Leopold II through a mytho-biographical performance by theater maker Kaneza Schaal. Designed by Christopher Myers the performance draws on archival footage from Belgian filmmaker André Cauvin’s documentary Bwana Kitoko, mixing colonial aesthetics with traditional East African design to create a heightened visual persona. Building on Mark Twain’s King Leopold’s Soliloquy published in 1905, a fictional monologue written after Twain’s visit to Congo Free State and Patrice Lumumba’s 1960 independence speech in Congo, KLII considers the residue of colonialism in our everyday lives. 

Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, April 17-19, 2025



Cast & Creative Team
Created & Co-Directed by Kaneza Schaal
Designed by Christopher Myers
Sound by Rucyl Mills (Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago)
Light by Christopher Wong (Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago)
Original Sound Design by Camila Ortiz and Ian Askew
Original Light Design by Itohan Edoloyi
Dance Consulting by Jonathan Kubakundimana
Recorded Vocals by Kenita Miller and Ian Askew
Technical Direction by Cheyanne Williams
Managing Direction by Chelsea Goding
Design Support by James Gibbel
Stage Management by Lenyn Hernandez Marcia
Produced by Kiara Benn

Performers: Kaneza Schaal, Ian Askew, Sifiso Mabena, Cheyanne Williams, Jonathan Kubakundimana, Rucyl Mills, Kiara Benn

Texts
King Leopold’s Soliloquy by Mark Twain, Patrice Lumumba’s 1960 independence speech in Congo, Discourse on Colonialism by Aimé Césaire, monologue by Christopher Myers with Kaneza Schaal


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