To be quite honest, I only thought I knew what to expect. I knew it was about the rise of Fela Kuti, a Nigerian musician in the 1960s and 70s who pioneered a genre called Afrobeat, a fusion of jazz, funk, highlife and native Yoruba music. I also knew that some of his songs made up the score, basically making it a jukebox musical. After learning about Afrobeat and its related genres in one of my ethnomusicology classes, I knew that this musical would not shy away from Afrobeat’s true essence, nor would it be a funfest with a weak plot, like most jukebox musicals. It’s impossible to properly tell the story of Fela and Afrobeat without reaching out to the audience and pulling them in, sometimes by force. What I didn’t expect was the extent to which the production would go to engage, and thus ensnare, the audience.
You’d have to be made of stone to resist. Perhaps my excitement at finally seeing Fela! affected my experience, but after being foiled in my first attempt to see it off-Broadway two years ago, one can’t blame me for wanting to make the most of it. I hurried off to my seat, but once I got inside the doors, my eyes were immediately drawn to the African art that lined the walls and the lights that were hung above the stage. The thrust stage of the Olivier is more appropriate for this show than the proscenium arch stage it currently occupies in New York: by thrusting the performers out into the audience, thus giving them a platform from which to jump and interact with viewers, the barrier between stage and audience is broken. The fact that the show takes place in Fela’s home venue The Shrine, with us as the Shrine’s audience, completes the 360 degree experience the show wants to achieve. I found it extremely difficult to not move during the pre-show music or the first few numbers, and when Fela the character asked us to stand up to dance, I didn’t hesitate. Unfortunately I was slowed down by sickness, as well as years of training in theatre etiquette.
The performance itself was, of course, amazing. Afrobeat is one of my favorite genres, but unfortunately I don’t get to hear it live as much as I’d like. Sahr Ngaujah (Fela) performs with such passion, life and energy that for some time during the performance, I forgot that he wasn’t really Fela Kuti. Every dancer, singer and band member deserves (and receives at every performance) all the credit and praise in the world. However, as I said before, Fela! is not perfect. Even during the first act, the plot drags at times, making the 3-hour running time feel quite long, no matter how much fun you’re having. Even though music and dance are the true stars of Fela!, plot and pacing should never be sacrificed so that other elements can shine the brightest. Another problem, which is not necessarily the show’s fault, is the fact that our seats were too high to see much of the background screen onto which song lyrics are projected. Even though our £10 seats had a near-perfect view otherwise (I imagine there are few bad seats in that theatre), seeing all the text would have been very helpful in fully understanding the songs. However, the text’s purpose is debatable: is it there for visual stimulation, or for us non-Africans to understand the thick African accents onstage, or for us to sing along with the performers? Slow parts aside, the plot has a lot to say about politics, colonialism, music, pride, and love. Fela! has caught the essence of Fela Kuti and the body of work he left behind, and is teaching a whole generation of theatregoers about a genre and artist mostly known to world music connoisseurs. Kudos to those of you who read this whole thing! I know it’s a long blog entry, but this is a show that, like Fela’s music, demands to be talked about.
Sean Roderick
UCLA
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