The appointment of a renegade son of the soil as Warrant Chief by the white District Officer is received with utter consternation by the warrior kingdom of Umudimkpa. In a bid to assert his authority, he opts for a showdown with the aged regency, exploiting the native police and the services of a dreaded juju man to unleash a reign of terror on the land. His rabid obsession with power finds ready capital in the unfortunate shooting of a white preacher by a lone native. He sets himself on a demolition course against the whole community, hounding the men and grabbing their women, heedless of marriage or betrothal tags. He is a scorpion gone beserk. But would he dare to sit on the ancient throne of the kingdom with its deadly myths, mystique and taboos?
When The Scorpion is the third in the author's The Umudimkpa Discourse, a series of plays set in history in the Igboland of Nigeria. Like its thrilling precursors (the much acclaimed Shadows of the Ancestors and the hilarious Your Man, Abednego) this four-act play is a feast of culture, history and literature. It maintains an essential thematic thrust and historical congruency but pushes new frontiers of form and vibrancy with a stunning use of improvisations and the exploration of symbolism.
This work deserves its plaudits and underscores Onyechi Mbamali's amazing depth and brilliance as wordsmith and playwright.....