Fela!, the Musical
Performing at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre in New York
The music icon Fela Anikupalo Kuti was the unlikely culmination of generations of talent and courage. His grandfather, Jay Jay, was a classical musician with an international reputation. His father was a devout man-of-the-cloth and the strict headmaster of a high school. His mother, Funmilayo, organized a successful women’s movement in Nigeria, stood firm in the face of the colonial authorities, and traveled the world — even meeting Mao Zedong in China during the height of Mao’s cult of personality.
Fela grew up as Nigeria was loosening its colonial shackles, but he soon discovered that colonialism was replaced by equally cruel military dictatorships at the end of British rule in 1960. These many influences led Fela to become a successful band leader and social reformer. He would eventually become so incensed by the rampant corruption that he declared his own independent republic of Kalakuta and ran for president. He became an easy target for Nigerian leadership.
Fela never cut a deal with a major record label because he was afraid to dilute his message. He also didn’t write any endearing love songs like Bob Marley, so his pill was tougher to swallow.
Fela’s story is larger than life, both too beautiful and too awful to imagine, and that is why it is fit for a musical. The new musical Fela! puts a celebratory spin on the musician’s immensely complex personality.
