Biro, a new play written by Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine, is at its core a story of survival that journeys across the landscapes of Uganda, Cuba and America. The play begins in a Texas prison with Biro, the title character pleading for assistance from an immigration lawyer. Through the use of projected still photographs from the 1900’s to present, we see and hear how a young boy from a war torn country, Uganda, becomes a man. After successfully taking up arms in the liberation struggle for his country, Biro finds himself at the front lines of a global war with a new plague - AIDS. He is diagnosed HIV positive in 1986, a time when "everyone was grabbed with hysteria", and medication and sympathy were unavailable. We learn of the toll the epidemic takes on his family and friends, and come to understand the difficult choices he makes that eventually lead to his incarceration in America. Ultimately, what we discover is a man who in the face of adversity "will do anything to survive...even if it means going to hell. I’ll do it to survive then move on."

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