OFF-BROADWAY REVIEW
FELA!
Reviewed by David Sanchez
Published 2008-09-02
The band was jamming as we entered the theater. It was full of drums and horns, enticing us to move and setting a groove. The walls engulfed us in images of black ancestor heroes, tribal masks, and colorful murals. A mood was being set. It was clear that this was not going to be a normal night out at the theater. Then the cast enters dressed in clothing undeniably African and undeniably from the 1960s. They don't simply enter either.
They groove. The lights go down in the audience and suddenly the spell is complete. Fela is giving his final performance here at the shrine before his exodus from a troubled Nigeria , and we lucky few have been invited to be a part of it.
Fela Anikulap Kuti was a musician (and more) during the sixties and the seventies as well as a controversial political figure. His mother, a political activist herself, and his father, a Christian minister, had hopes that he would become a doctor; however, music, not medicine, was his passion. He lived a life of no compromise, truth, and "originality, not superficiality," as one lyric goes. He travelled to America during the black civil rights movement and came back to Nigeria where music became his weapon to oppose the corrupt government. He was oppressed by the Nigerian government because he refused to stay quiet, insisting on justice, dignity, and truth.
So, just what is this show? First, it's a party! That is what Fela would have us believe at least when he invites us, the audience, to it. That notion belies the serious tone and subject of the lead character. At the same time, that's the paradox of it. Just like his music, which dealt with topics such as political corruption, independence of thought, suffering, and authenticity, life plays to the tune of a celebratory Afrobeat song.
During this farewell concert, the story of Fela's life unfolds, yet we aren't simply given the facts. More than anything, this production maps out the contours of Fela's inner journey throughout his career through the music and the dance, and as he explores his past with us, he must question just where it is his future lies as he contemplates the serious decision of leaving his homeland. Bill T. Jones, the conceiver, director and choreographer of this piece, is quoted as having said that this is not a biography. "It's a work of imagination." Indeed. The entire production shimmers from the music, to the lighting, to the performances - each element helps to evoke Fela's spirit, a rainbow of color and love.
Fela is played by Sahr Ngaujah uncompromisingly. He bares everything, never flinching even when revealing some of the uglier parts of the character. He infuses the role with the warmth, inspiration, and spirit that Fela himself must have shared with his own audiences. This is not a role that will be easy to replace due to the specificity of type and the demands placed on the actor, those demands not limited only to the fact that he also plays often with the band. This role asks the actor to give it everything he has every night, and Sahr Ngaujah delivers and then some. As a matter of fact, the entire cast bust their hearts to tell this story . The ensemble acts more as an abstract social presence rather than taking on and putting on individual roles. The only other actor with a 'part', so to speak, is Fela's deceased mother, Funmilayo. Played and sung beautifully by Abena Koomson, she is not so much seen as she is heard, like a spirit.
Antibalas, an Afrobeat band out of Brooklyn lends an air of authenticity to the production. The set and costumes are a work of art in themselves, both designed by Marina Draghici. Enough cannot be said for Bill T. Jones first theatrical endeavor. He has extended beyond the bounds of what we thought possible for theater, once again. He's a true visionary. His choreagraphy and direction gave us no less than four show stopping numbers, the most beautiful and awe-inspiring being the second act journey to the spirit realm. The book, on which Mr. Jones takes a credit, was also written by Jim Lewis known for Broadway's production of Chronicle of a Death Foretold.
This is one of those shows that is greater than the sum of its parts. There is always concern regarding theater these days whether the audience will relate. It's clear throughout the night that the issues raised by Fela thirty to forty years ago are still relevant today, and the creators subtly remind us of this. This is not a show where one can sit idly by. Fela! the musical is a transformative experience, theater magic that takes something old and renders it into something new and wonderful.
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