Play about gay man staged in conservative Uganda

(AP) A play that revolves around the turbulent life of a gay man is being staged in Uganda, where three years ago a parliamentarian wrote a bill seeking the death penalty for homosexuals.

This is the first time a play exploring homosexuality in Uganda is being performed in the nation, and the British playwrights say they hope their work can help "normalize the gay character" in this conservative East African country.

The absurdist play, titled "The River and the Mountain," premiered last Friday at an underground theater in the capital, Kampala, amid fears the police would raid the venue and stop production.

Pepe Julian Onziema, a prominent Uganda gay activist, has praised the staging of the play in the country as "revolutionary."

The play is being performed despite the objections of government censors, who have blocked it from being staged at Uganda's national theater.