Melissa Kiplagat

Melissa Kiplagat, 28, is an internationally trained professional actress working primarily in Kenya and most known for her role as Amara in the TV Show This Is Life. After graduating with an Economics degree from the Ivy-League, Brown University in 2013, she returned to Kenya to pursue a professional career in the arts and has since performed in over 17 plays both in Nairobi and London, including Apples From The Desert, Butterflies Are Free, The Penelopiad and The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, 10 TV shows (leading in 5 including Ngazi, This Is Life, News Just In and Country Queen) and a number of short films including It's Been A While and Kaleidoscope: a performance which earned her a Best Actress in Film nomination in the prestigious 2017 Kalasha Awards. In late 2016 Melissa joined the renowned Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts in London (UK) and in 2017 graduated with a Masters in Performance (Acting). She credits the experience for transforming and elevating her performance skills and opening her eyes to the holistic approach the profession demands. When not on set, Melissa organises acting and film masterclasses under her Melissa Kiplagat Masterclasses (MKM) venture, in an effort to pass on the training she received during her masters and cultivate a culture of collaboration and support in the industry.. She has facilitated over 10 masterclasses to date with topics ranging from auditioning and movement to directing and script writing.