Hi Meltingpot Readers,
I know you're dying to know. How was Fela! on Broadway? People, it was AMAZING. I laughed. I cried. I danced. I fell in love with the music.
Even if you don't win a free pair of tickets from me, I encourage everyone to go see Fela! on Broadway before it closes on August 4, 2012.
The reviewers haven't lied. The show is vibrant and thrilling. At one point, before the second act even, the entire audience was on their feet, dancing and singing with the actors on stage. If you love world music, a good story, and fabulous dancing, Fela! will satisfy.
But here's why I LOVED the show so much. Fela Kuti has a truly fascinating and important life story. His contribution to music, politics, civil rights and the Black aesthetic is so huge, I can't believe more people, myself included, don't include him in the same conversations with Malcolm X, Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. He used his art as protest. But make no mistake, he was an innovative and groundbreaking musician first. Clearly the show on Broadway didn't get into all of the controversy of Fela Kuti's life, after all, it's about entertainment first, but nonetheless, they give you enough information to make you want to know more. To come home and find out for yourself who the man behind the music really was.
The other reason I loved the show was that there were just so many beautiful Black people on the stage. The African aesthetic was on full display, from the brilliant costumes, to the set design, to the AWESOME hairstyles. Afros, dreds, braids, oh my! It made my heart sing.
So, dear readers, you have until midnight tonight to leave a comment on Monday's post to be entered in the drawing. Five lucky readers will win a pair of tickets for next Tuesday's show.
Good Luck!
Peace!
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