After decades on stage and screen, you’d think Helen Keli had played every type of character imaginable. But this year, the acclaimed Nairobi actress is back playing two women who couldn’t be more different from each other or from herself.
Keli is reprising her role as Delilah in Single Kiasi Season 4, a character she first brought to life in a previous season. The bold older woman in a relationship with a much younger man continues to push boundaries, unapologetically pursuing what she wants including starting a family with her reluctant partner Ritchie. “Delilah is the most not-me character I have ever played,” Keli says. “Stepping into her world was both terrifying and thrilling. She makes no apologies for who she is, bold, confident and completely in control.”
At the same time, Keli is playing Bridget on Lazizi, a woman nursing years of bitterness in her marriage. Where Delilah is bold and forward, Bridget is calculating and controlled. It’s the kind of acting challenge that separates good performers from great ones and Keli is clearly relishing every moment.
The reactions to her return as Delilah have been priceless. “Oh my gosh, the feedback has been hilarious. Honestly, no one in my family has had the courage to say a word about Delilah. Not a single comment. I think they’re all still processing.”
The chemistry with her co-stars makes both characters work. In Single Kiasi, Kevin Maina plays her younger lover Ritchie and their natural connection comes from trust built over time. “When two actors trust each other, that’s when the magic truly happens,” she explains.
On Lazizi, working with Mwaniki Mageria brought a completely different dynamic. “Mwaniki brings such maturity and a calm presence to his role as Mark, and that energy really helped me step deeper into my own role as Bridget,” she says. The two shows require entirely different chemistry, and Keli has mastered both.
These television roles came after what Keli describes as the most challenging project of her career. Earlier this year, she performed Elements, a one woman show written by John Sibi Okumu and directed by Wakio Mzenge. Standing alone on stage with no one to share the load taught her things she didn’t know about herself. “It pushed me in ways I hadn’t imagined. But through it all, I grew as a performer, as a storyteller, and as a woman.”
Theatre remains her first love, even as she masters television acting. “Theatre is raw, it’s immediate, it’s alive. There’s no hiding, no second take,” she says. Television demands something entirely different. “The camera catches everything, even the tiniest flicker of thought or feeling. So you have to pull back, trust the stillness and let the subtle moments do the work.”
Her influences are the powerhouses you’d expect: Viola Davis, Maggie Smith, Meryl Streep and Helen Mirren. “These women are the very definition of range, discipline, and dedication,” Keli says. What draws her to them isn’t just talent but the years of discipline visible in every performance. “You can feel the years of hard work behind every performance, the respect they have for their characters and their audiences.”
For aspiring actors watching her career and wondering how to get there, Keli has no shortcuts to offer. “It doesn’t happen by magic. You must put in the work. You might have a talent, God-given talent, but if you bury it, it doesn’t grow.” Her advice is simple: take classes, keep learning, never stop improving.
