The late Alex Mukulu
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I Uganda’s arts and entertainment industry is mourning the death of legendary playwright, musician, actor and theatre director Alex Mukulu, who passed away on August 15, 2026, at the age of 72.
News of Mukulu’s death was confirmed by several Ugandan media and entertainment platforms, including Galaxy TV Uganda, BigEye.ug and MBU, triggering an outpouring of grief from an industry in which he had spent decades creating, directing and mentoring.
By press time, details about the circumstances surrounding his death remained limited. His family had also not yet released comprehensive information about the cause of death or burial arrangements.
Mukulu was born in 1954 in Misebe, Ssingo County, Buganda, to Paulo Kayizi Lugaizi and Victoria Ndagire, the daughter of Prince Yokana Kimbugwe of Lungujja.
After attending Kololo Secondary School, he joined Makerere University, where he studied Film and Drama. His university training laid the foundation for a career that would see him become one of the most recognisable figures in Uganda’s theatre industry.
For nearly five decades, Mukulu used the stage to entertain audiences while simultaneously confronting some of the country’s most difficult political and social questions. His productions frequently blended satire, music, drama and African cultural themes, making theatre a vehicle for public reflection.
His catalogue was extensive. Among his earliest works were Muzukulu wa Kabangala, produced in 1977, Engule ya Kamukukulu in 1978 and Springs of Tears in 1979.
He went on to produce The Cigarette, Opera Bakisimba, Twin Opera, The Celebrity, I Killed the Archbishop, Gwanga Mujje, Mbasalidde ga Nkolwa, Stop It with 11 Men, Liberator Kid and The Drunkards.
However, it was productions such as Wounds of Africa, 30 Years of Bananas and The Guest of Honour that cemented his reputation as a playwright capable of turning the theatre stage into a platform for examining Uganda and Africa’s political and social realities.
Wounds of Africa, produced in 1988, and 30 Years of Bananas, produced in 1991, became particularly associated with his distinctive approach to social commentary. The Guest of Honour, produced in 1994, further demonstrated his ability to use theatre to provoke thought beyond simple entertainment.
His other works included Peasants Cry, Excuse Me Mzungu, Seven Workers of Uganda and Radio Mambo Bado. In later years, he continued producing work, including A Good Muganda Case in 2021 and The People’s President in 2022.
One of the biggest milestones in Mukulu’s career came in 2007 when Journey to Self-Realization was performed at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kampala.
The performance gave Mukulu an opportunity to showcase Ugandan theatre before an international audience and underscored the role of the creative arts in telling Uganda’s story during one of the country’s most significant international events.
Remarkably, Mukulu did not completely withdraw from the stage despite his long career. He recently returned to theatre after a lengthy break with Kulunkalu ne Kulumbisi, an African adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
The production illustrated his continuing willingness to experiment and to reinterpret internationally recognised stories through African cultural perspectives.
His death therefore marks the passing of one of the generation of Ugandan artists who helped establish theatre as an important space for cultural expression, criticism and national conversation.
As tributes begin to emerge, Mukulu leaves behind an extensive body of work and a legacy that stretches across generations. His plays, characters and theatrical ideas are likely to remain part of Uganda’s artistic history long after the curtains have fallen on his own remarkable career.
For Uganda’s theatre community, the death of Alex Mukulu is not simply the loss of an accomplished playwright and director. It is the loss of a cultural institution whose work helped demonstrate that the stage could entertain audiences while also challenging them to question their society, history and leadership.
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