Mans is too tired, so I will not tell you all the shindigs of Thanksgiving or Black Friday, or the rest of the long weekend, buttttt, offcourse as we were off bonding, we had to do Broadway :)
Now Billy Elliot, Memphis and Hamlet, which I've been (especially) dying to see, are in theatres. But if you know my parentals well, my mother especially, you know that when those are in theatres annnnnnnnnd FELA! is in theatres, there is zero debate. As shopping is my utmost detested thing to do...reluctantly I go.
So my best friend Mr Shawn "Jay Z" Carter, maan just kidding no-one shoot, and Mr & Mrs Will Smith present Fela to Broadway... guess they figured Broadway needed to know there's African music beyond The Lion King (though that is so awesome I've seen it 4 times).
Off course you all know the story: Fela Anikulapo Kuti, being Nigeria's Bob Marley give or take, was a cultural hero and political activist who rose up as the voice of the people in the 70's, taunting through his music, the Nigerian government and law enforcement for the endemic corruption in the country, and Africa as whole. For which off course, he was duly attacked, beaten, and imprisoned on an unbelievable number of occasions.
If it wasn't him taking jabs at them, it was those raunchy gyrations, his vehement stance against the residues of colonialism, his dope-smoking, insatiable addiction to women (27 Wives!!!..come on now), or the anarchist Independent Republic of Kalakuta he presidented (new word, hush). He was a hedonistic rebel.
His sound - a genius blend of Jazz, Dance, Afro-Cuban beats and Funk (which he called 'yansh') which became AFROBEAT.
Fela's story...a sad one in my humble opinion, of a brave soul, an individual no doubt, but in the latter years of his life especially, a lost & tortured soul,...came to end with his death at 58 from AIDS complications.
Fela was played by Sahr Ngaujah, who did a tremendous job. I really commend the entire cast and crew, they really did their thing. The effort put into the stage, props, etccc to make it look like Fela's Shrine, was 100%, if intensely distressing. The choreography, acting, singing, costumes, music band, and all the rest of that theatre jazz was also 100%, the energy simply 150%. Creatively, I admit I was moved.
So if you're in the area, as a lover of the arts, it's not a must, but a "worth-seeing", however controversial and odious his life may come across. If not, here's some sneek peeks...
Fela On Broadway: Energy
Fela On Broadway: Revolution
Anyhoo folks, that's me for the night,
Love, sweet dreams, God bless xxxx
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