Fela!

Last updated
Fela!
FelaLogo.jpg
Fela! logo
Music Fela Kuti
LyricsFela Kuti
Book Bill T. Jones
Jim Lewis
Productions2008 Off-Broadway
2009 Broadway
2010 West End
2011 World Tour
2012 Broadway revival

Fela! is a jukebox musical with a book by Bill T. Jones and Jim Lewis, based on music and lyrics by the late Nigerian singer Fela Kuti, with additional music by Aaron Johnson and Jordan McLean and additional lyrics by Jim Lewis. It is based on events in the life of groundbreaking Nigerian composer and activist Fela Anikulapo Kuti. It portrays Kuti in the days when he was the target of 1,000 government soldiers assigned to end his public performances at the legendary Lagos nightclub The Shrine.

Contents

The musical ran Off-Broadway for one month in 2008. It premiered on Broadway at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on November 23, 2009, and ran until January 2011. The Off-Broadway production won the Lucille Lortel Awards for Best Musical, Outstanding Choreographer for Bill T. Jones, and Outstanding Costume Design for Marina Draghici. The Broadway production received eleven 2010 Tony Award nominations and won Best Choreography, Best Costume Design in a Musical, and Best Sound Design of a Musical. [1] Alex Gibney's 2014 documentary film Finding Fela followed aspects of the Broadway musical, and drew heavily on interviews with Jones. [2]

Productions

Fela! opened at the Off-Broadway 37 Arts Theatre B on September 4, 2008, and closed on October 5, 2008. It was conceived by Bill T. Jones, Steve Hendel and Jim Lewis, directed and choreographed by Jones. The production was designed by Marina Draghici (scenery and costumes) Robert Wierzel (lighting) Peter Nigrini (projection) and Robert Kaplowitz (sound). The cast featured Sahr Ngaujah as Fela and Abena Koomson as Funmilayo, Fela's mother. [3]

The Broadway production began previews at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on October 19, 2009, and opened officially on November 23. Again directed and choreographed by Jones, the cast included Ngaujah and Kevin Mambo as Fela, Saycon Sengbloh and Michelle Williams as Sandra (Williams played Sandra in 2013) and Lillias White as Funmilayo. [4] Patti LaBelle replaced Lillias White as Funmilayo on September 14, 2010. The production closed on January 2, 2011. [5] [6] The Broadway production received eleven Tony Award nominations, including one for Best Musical, the most of any production that season, along with the revival of La Cage aux Folles . [7] [8]

For both productions, Kuti's music has been arranged and performed by the Brooklyn-based Antibalas and featuring the tenor saxophone soloist Stuart D. Bogie.

The London production, staged at the National Theatre's Olivier Theatre, began previews on November 6, 2010, with an opening night on November 16. It ran in repertoire with other National Theatre productions, and was simulcast internationally in 2011 as part of National Theatre Live. Sahr Ngaujah and Kevin Mambo appeared in the cast, [9] as well as Dele Sosimi, Fela's former keyboard player, reprising his own role. In 2011 a production ran at Sadler's Wells in London's Islington.

Fela! toured in North America. Its opening performance was held in September 2011 at the Harman Center for the Arts in Washington, D.C. The production opened in Canada in October 2011 at the Canon Theatre in Toronto, starring Sahr Ngaujah and Adesola Osakalumi, with a scheduled run until November 2011. From November to December 2011 it played at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco. From December 2011 to January 2012 the production played in the Ahmanson Theater of the Los Angeles Music Center, where it returned for a second run in April and May 2013. The musical had a limited return engagement on Broadway at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre from July 2012 to August 2012. The musical then continued on its world tour, playing in Australia, Japan, and a return to Africa, among other venues. [10]

Musical numbers

Response

The 2008 Off-Broadway production received generally positive reviews. Ben Brantley of The New York Times observed:

This is music that gets into your bloodstream, setting off vibrations you'll live with for days to come.... If you set aside your basic nervous and circulatory systems, though, you might observe that by the standards of the well-made musical, Fela! leaves a lot to be desired. The structure of the book ... feels slapdash to the point of confusion. For all the impudence and exuberance of the wall-to-wall music ... a pious haze of hagiography hangs over the show, creating the blinkered view of a great man martyred. Yet the ascendancy of the music in Fela!, and the three-dimensional translation of it by Mr. Jones and his vibrant design team, makes such criticism irrelevant for as long as you're in your seat (or out of it, since the audience is regularly encouraged to stand and undulate). Mr. Jones and company have given us an African variation on the same theme [of the energetic rebel] that triumphantly stakes out its own pioneer territory in the expanding land of musicals. [11]

David Rooney of Variety stated: "What it lacks in structure and concision [it] makes up for in heat, energy and sensuality. Like last season's Passing Strange and this summer's Hair revival, this dance-intensive bio-portrait aims to be less traditional musical theater than cathartic experience, lacing its communicative passion with infectious euphoria, rebellious anger and heartfelt despair." The review added: "There perhaps could be more texture in the central character portrait, providing deeper insight into the radical showman, and anyone expecting a detailed life story may be disappointed. Fela's questionable attitudes toward women are suggested rather than explored, and his later life, his ongoing political activity and death from AIDS-related illness in 1997 are absent. [The action] is deftly integrated with Peter Nigrini's video projections to create a show that's invigoratingly messy, visceral and transporting." [12] Les Gutman of the internet magazine CurtainUp was even more enthusiastic, calling the musical "one of the most visually complete theatrical experiences imaginable" and a "true treasure". [13]

The touring production received a positive review from The Globe and Mail ′s J. Kelly Nestruck, who cited Sahr Ngaujah's performance for particular praise, as "channelling the life force of the titular singer" in a "sweat-soaked performance". Nestruck observed that

Lewis and Jones do focus on the more crowd-pleasing elements of Kuti's politics – his embrace of marijuana and attacks on militarism, corruption and corporate imperialism – while slightly brushing over the less palatable elements [...] His own sexually imperialist attitude toward women is underplayed in favour of an emphasis on his worship of his mother, an operatic, otherworldly presence voiced by Melanie Marshall. [14]

Disputes and lawsuits

In July 2010, New York photographer Marilyn Nance sought damages from the show, claiming the unauthorized use of one of her images. [15] [16] [17]

In November 2010, writer and historian Carlos Moore, author of the 1982 authorized biography of Fela Kuti, Fela, Fela! This Bitch of a Life!, sued the producers of Fela! for copyright infringement, [18] [19] and asked the courts to close the show. [20] [21] In December 2011, the lawsuit was settled out of court, and it was agreed that all playbills and associated materials would henceforth bear an acknowledgement stating that the musical was inspired by Moore's book. [22]

Plot

Fela! takes place around 1977, at the height of Fela Kuti's influence as a composer and performer in Nigeria. Kuti was an originator of the Afrobeat sound, and the musical opens with him addressing the audience from a concert at his club, the Afrika Shrine in Nigeria's largest city, Lagos. Kuti indicates that the Afrika Shrine had become a hugely popular venue, and a gathering place for youth opposed to Nigeria's military dictatorship. As one critic describes much of the first half of the show:

It's part musicology lesson as Kuti explains how he discovered the Afrobeat sound by pulling together the drums from West African highlife and the ragged guitars from James Brown with traditional call-and-response vocals. As a front-man-in-training rambling around London in the early 1960s, he absorbed the influences of the two different shades of cool represented by Frank Sinatra and Miles Davis. [23]

Kuti reveals how torn he is between his respect for the example set by his mother, Funmilayo, a teacher and Nigerian civil rights activist, and his quest for fame and sometimes hedonism. He gradually becomes more involved in open opposition to Nigeria's military regime, and his lyrics become overtly political. The regime responds to the provocation with increasingly violent retaliation. Kuti perseveres and releases Zombie , an international hit openly critical of the Nigerian government. The show depicts the army raid of Kuti's compound (a commune he called Kalakuta Republic [24] ), reportedly by 1000 soldiers, which followed the release of Zombie. The raid culminates with the torture of Kuti, his wives and other commune residents, and the murder of his mother. The show concludes with a protest staged by Kuti in October 1979, accompanied by his family and members of the Young African Pioneers. The protest was held on the day before General Olusegun Obasanjo was to retire from the Nigerian presidency for the first time. Kuti held Obasanjo responsible for his mother's death, and publicly defied the regime once again with his protest, leaving a symbolic coffin in front of Obasanjo's residence at the Dodan army barracks. The show concludes with symbolic coffins being laid on the stage to protest injustices suffered by the people of Nigeria and throughout Africa.

Awards and nominations

Original Off-Broadway production

YearAward CeremonyCategoryNomineeResult
2009 Drama Desk Award [25] Outstanding Musical Nominated
Outstanding Actor in a Musical Sahr Ngaujah Nominated
Outstanding Choreography Bill T. Jones Nominated
Outstanding Orchestrations Aaron JohnsonNominated

Original Broadway production

YearAward CeremonyCategoryNomineeResult
2010 Tony Award Best Musical Nominated
Best Book of a Musical Bill T. Jones and Jim LewisNominated
Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical Sahr Ngaujah Nominated
Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical Lillias White Nominated
Best Direction of a Musical Bill T. Jones Nominated
Best Choreography Won
Best Orchestrations Aaron JohnsonNominated
Best Scenic Design Marina DraghiciNominated
Best Costume Design Won
Best Lighting Design Robert WeirzelNominated
Best Sound Design Robert KaplowitzWon
2011 Grammy Award Best Musical Show Album Nominated

Original London production

YearAward CeremonyCategoryNomineeResult
2011 Laurence Olivier Award Best New Musical Nominated
Best Actor in a Musical Sahr Ngaujah Nominated
Best Theatre Choreographer Bill T. Jones Nominated

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afrobeat</span> West African music genre, distinct from Afrobeats

Afrobeat is a Nigerian music genre that involves the combination of West African musical styles from mainly Nigeria such as the traditional Yoruba and Igbo music and highlife with American funk, jazz, and soul influences. With a focus on chanted vocals, complex intersecting rhythms, and percussion. The style was pioneered in the 1960s by Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Fela Kuti, who is most known for popularizing the style both within and outside Nigeria. At the height of his popularity, he was referred to as one of Africa's most "challenging and charismatic music performers."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fela Kuti</span> Nigerian musician and activist (1938–1997)

Fela Aníkúlápó Kútì, also famously known as Abàmì Ẹ̀dá, was a Nigerian musician, bandleader, composer, political activist, and Pan-Africanist. He is regarded as the King of Afrobeat, a Nigerian music genre that combines West African music with American funk and jazz. At the height of his popularity, he was referred to as one of Africa's most "challenging and charismatic music performers". AllMusic described him as "a musical and sociopolitical voice" of international significance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Femi Kuti</span> Nigerian musician and singer-songwriter

Olufela Olufemi Anikulapo Kuti, popularly known as Femi Kuti, is a Nigerian musician born in London and raised in Lagos. He is the eldest son of Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti and a grandchild of political campaigner, women's rights activist and traditional aristocrat Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Allen (musician)</span> Nigerian musician (1940–2020)

Tony Oladipo Allen was a Nigerian and French drummer, composer, and songwriter who lived and worked in Paris, France. Allen was the drummer and musical director of Fela Kuti's band Africa '70 from 1968 to 1979, and was one of the founders of the Afrobeat genre. Fela once stated that "without Tony Allen, there would be no Afrobeat". He was described by Brian Eno as "perhaps the greatest drummer who has ever lived".

Dr. Bekolari Ransome-Kuti was a Nigerian physician known for his work as a human rights activist.

<i>Expensive Shit</i> 1975 studio album by Fela Ransome Kuti & Africa 70

Expensive Shit is the twelfth full-length album by pioneering Afrobeat artist Fela Kuti and his Africa '70 band, released in 1975. It was reissued in 2000 by MCA Records, packaged with Kuti's He Miss Road (1975) on the same CD.

<i>Zombie</i> (album) 1977 album by Fela Kuti

Zombie is a studio album by Nigerian Afrobeat musician Fela Kuti. It was released in Nigeria by Coconut Records in 1976, and in the United Kingdom by Creole Records in 1977.

Lillias White is an American actress and singer. She is particularly known for her performances in Broadway musicals. In 1989 she won an Obie Award for her performance in the Off-Broadway musical Romance in Hard Times. In 1997 she won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical and Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical for portraying Sonja in Cy Coleman's The Life. She was nominated for a Tony Award again in 2010 for her work as Funmilayo in Fela Kuti's Fela!.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knitting Factory Records</span> American record label

Knitting Factory Records is an independent American music label that is notable for promoting a variety of artists, including the music of deceased Nigerian political activist Fela Kuti. The label promotes a variety of music artists including Ages and Ages, Ash Black Bufflo, Cuong Vu, Graham Haynes, Femi Kuti, Gary Lucas, Lumerians, Thomas Chapin, Patrolled By Radar, Joe Morris, Rachid Taha, Seun Kuti, and Shilpa Ray and her Happy Hookers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ransome-Kuti family</span> Nigerian political family

The Ransome-Kuti family is a Nigerian Yoruba political family noted for its simultaneous contributions to art, religion, education and medicine. It belongs to the Nigerian bourgeoisie, and also has historic links to the Nigerian chieftaincy system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sahr Ngaujah</span> American actor, director (b. 1976)

Michael Sahr Ngaujah is an American theater actor and director. Not long after his parents arrival from Sierra Leone via UK, Sahr was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Within five years his family relocated to Atlanta. He spent most of his early career working in experimental theater in Amsterdam. He made his breakthrough for his Tony Award-nominated performance as Fela Kuti in the 2009 Broadway musical Fela! He was nominated for his second Tony Award for his performance Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec in Moulin Rouge! (2019). On screen, he is best known for his roles in ABC's Last Resort (2012) and Netflix's Luke Cage (2018).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lemi Ghariokwu</span> Nigerian artist (born 1955)

Lemi Ghariokwu, also known simply as Lemi, is a Nigerian painter, illustrator and designer who is most renowned for providing many of the original cover images for the recordings of Nigerian musician Fela Kuti.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">64th Tony Awards</span>

The 64th Annual Tony Awards took place on Sunday, June 13, 2010, held again at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The host was Sean Hayes. These awards paid tribute to Broadway productions during the 2009–2010 season. The cut off-date for Tony eligibility was April 29, 2010, and the nominations were announced on May 4.

<i>Confusion</i> (album) 1975 studio album by Fela Ransome-Kuti and the Africa 70

Confusion is a 1975 album by Nigerian Afrobeat musician Fela Kuti and his Africa 70 band. It was arranged, composed, and produced by Kuti, who recorded the album after choosing to emphasize his African heritage and nationalism in his music. Confusion is a commentary on the confused state of post-colonial Lagos and its lack of infrastructure and proper leadership at the time. Kuti's pidgin English lyrics depict difficult conditions in the city, including a frenetic, multilingual trading market and inextricable traffic jams in Lagos' major intersections.

<i>No Agreement</i> 1977 studio album by Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti and Africa 70

No Agreement is an album by Nigerian Afrobeat composer, bandleader, and multi-instrumentalist Fela Kuti, recorded in 1977 and originally released on the Nigerian Decca label.

<i>Shuffering and Shmiling</i> 1978 studio album by Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti and Africa 70

Shuffering and Shmiling is an album by Nigerian Afrobeat composer, bandleader, and multi-instrumentalist Fela Kuti, recorded in 1977 and originally released on the Nigerian Coconut label.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bolanle Austen-Peters</span> Nigerian movie director (born 1969)

Bolanle Austen-Peters, is a lawyer, a multiple award-winning movie director/producer, theater director/producer and cultural entrepreneur. She is the founder and artistic director of BAP Productions and the arts and culture center Terra Kulture in Lagos. She has been described by the CNN as the "woman pioneering theater in Nigeria", named one of the most influential women in Africa by Forbes Afrique and been recognised with several awards for her contribution to the arts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Felabration</span> Music festival

Felabration is an annual music festival conceived in 1998 by Yeni Anikulapo-Kuti in memory and celebration of her father Fela Kuti, a Nigerian musician and human rights activist known for pioneering the afrobeat genre of music. The one-week-long event which is held annually at the New Afrika Shrine in Ikeja, attracts visitors from different countries and has thus been considered as an official tourist destination by the Lagos State Government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abeokuta Grammar School</span> Public school in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria

Abeokuta Grammar School is a secondary school in the city of Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria. It is currently located at Idi-Aba area, of Abeokuta. Often called the first grammar school in Nigeria, it is attended by students from all parts of Nigeria, the West Coast of Africa, South Africa, Europe and even Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Made Kuti</span> Nigerian singer and songwriter

Ọmọ́rìnmádé Kútì known professionally as Made Kuti, is a Nigerian afrobeat singer, songwriter and instrumentalist. He released his debut album titled For(e)ward in 2021.

References

  1. ↑ "Who's Nominated?". Tony Awards. IBM Corp. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
  2. ↑ Jones, J.R. (September 10, 2014). "Afrobeat giant Fela Kuti: Too big for the screen". Chicago Reader. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
  3. ↑ Gans, Andrew. "Most Happy Fela!: New Musical Extends Off-Broadway Run", playbill.com, September 12, 2008.
  4. ↑ Hetrick, Adam. "Afrobeat Musical Fela! Opens On Broadway Nov. 23" playbill.com, November 23, 2009
  5. ↑ Gans, Andrew."Patti LaBelle Will Step into Fela! in September; Musical to Close in January" Archived 2011-12-06 at the Wayback Machine playbill.com, August 12, 2010
  6. ↑ Blank, Matthew."Fela! Closing night in New York" playbill.com, January 3, 2011.
  7. ↑ Nominees for Tony Awards, 2010 tonyawards.com
  8. ↑ Gans, Andrew and Jones, Kenneth.2010 "Tony Nominations Announced; Fela! and La Cage Top List" Archived May 6, 2010, at the Wayback Machine playbill.com, May 4, 2010.
  9. ↑ "'Fela!' listing" Archived 2010-05-05 at the Wayback Machine nationaltheatre.org.uk
  10. ↑ Bacalzo, Dan."'Fela!' to Return to Broadway for Summer Run at Al Hirschfeld Theatre" theatermania.com, June 11, 2012.
  11. ↑ Brantley, Ben. "Afrobeat’s King, Recrowned", The New York Times, September 5, 2008.
  12. ↑ Rooney, David. "Fela!" Variety, September 4, 2008.
  13. ↑ Gutman, Les. "Fela!" CurtainUp, September 3, 2008.
  14. ↑ Nestruck, J. Kelly (October 26, 2011). "Unique rhythm of Fela! will carry you away". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved October 26, 2011.
  15. ↑ Tajudeen Olutoyin (2016). "A new twist fo[sic] Fela's 'ITT' (International Thief Thief)?". African Outlook. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04.
  16. ↑ Marilyn Nance v. Fela Broadway LLC et al Archived 2014-05-12 at the Wayback Machine , Monday, July 26, 2010.
  17. ↑ Patrick Healy, "Photographer Sues 'Fela!' Producers Over Image Used in Show", New York Times, July 28, 2010.
  18. ↑ Amelia Hill, "Fela! musical is sued by biographer; Show based on life of Afrobeat legend Fela Anikulapo Kuti faces $5m lawsuit", The Guardian, November 9, 2010.
  19. ↑ Dave Itzkoff, "‘Fela!’ Is Sued for Copyright Infringement", New York Times, November 9, 2010.
  20. ↑ Larry Neumeister, "Author seeks shutdown of 'Fela!' Broadway musical", Associated Press, November 9, 2010.
  21. ↑ Jaime Aron, "Author seeks shutdown of ‘Fela!’ Broadway musical", Chicago Defender, November 8, 2010.
  22. ↑ Lemn Sissay, "Carlos Moore resolves case against FELA THE MUSICAL", The Emperor's Watchmaker, December 18, 2011.
  23. ↑ Nestruck, J. Kelly (October 26, 2011). "Unique rhythm of Fela! will carry you away". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved October 26, 2011.
  24. ↑ May, Chris (12 March 2011). "Part 21 – Final Fela Kuti Masterpieces Reissued". All About Jazz. Retrieved October 26, 2011.
  25. ↑ Gans, Andrew."Drama Desk Nominees Announced; 9 to 5 Garners Record-Breaking 15 Noms" playbill.com, April 27, 2009.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.