TONY AWARD WINNER AND SMASHING HIT
RETURNS TO CHICAGO BY POPULAR DEMAND!
PLAYING AT THE ARIE CROWN THEATER
FEBRUARY 19 -23, 2013
FELA! is thrilled to announce its return to Chicago for six performances only February 19 – 23, 2013 at the Arie Crown Theater (2301 South Lake Shore Drive).
A triumphant tale of courage, passion and love, FELA!
is the true story of Kuti, who created a type of music, Afrobeat, and
mixed these pounding eclectic rhythms (a blend of jazz, funk and African
rhythm and harmonies) with rousing lyrics that openly attacked the
corrupt and oppressive military dictatorships that rule Nigeria and much
of Africa. Featuring many of Fela Kuti’s most captivating songs and Bill T. Jones’s visionary staging, this
Tony® Award-winning musical reveals Kuti's controversial life as an
artist and political activist and celebrates his pioneering music.
FELA!
had its world premiere Off-Broadway in the summer of 2008, and opened
on Broadway at the Eugene O’Neil Theater to rapturous reviews a year
later where it played 34
previews and 463 regular performances. Numerous celebrities and
dignitaries caught the groundbreaking musical, including First Lady
Michelle Obama, Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, Kanye West, Oprah Winfrey
and Hugh Jackman, among others. Prior to its closing on Broadway,
London’s Royal National Theatre presented the production as part of its
season in the fall of 2010, marking the first time ever that the
National Theatre had presented a show that was simultaneously running on
Broadway. There, too, the show received rave reviews and numerous
awards and accolades. The show went on to tour internationally, selling
out theaters in Nigeria, Amsterdam, a return stint in London then a
successful tour across the United States, culminating in an acclaimed
encore four-week engagement on Broadway during the summer of 2012.
Critics around the country were effusive in their praise. The Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times raved about FELA!
with Hedy Weiss exclaiming FELA! a “ground-breaking Broadway musical.” The kinetic energy pulsing from the music and dancing of FELA! prompted Ben Brantley of The New York Times to say “There should be dancing in the streets.” Peter Marks of The Washington Post described it as “electroshock for the soul” and Charles McNulty added in The Los Angeles Times that FELA!
was “the most exuberant musical I’ve seen this season” and “the fusion
of his (Fela’s) sound is rapturously celebrated with a pinwheel parade
of pelvises.”
FELA! is directed and choreographed by Bill T. Jones, with a book by Jim Lewis and Bill T. Jones, and music and lyrics by Fela Anikulapo-Kuti. Conceived by Bill T. Jones, Jim Lewis and Stephen Hendel, the design and Tony Award winning costumes are by Marina Draghici, lighting design by Robert Wierzel and the Tony Award winning sound design by Robert Kaplowitz.
FELA! is
produced in association with Shawn ‘Jay-Z’ Carter, Will & Jada
Pinkett Smith, Ruth & Stephen Hendel, Roy Gabay, Sony Pictures
Entertainment, Edward Tyler Nahem, SlavaSmolokowski, Chip Meyrelles/Ken
Greiner, Douglas G. Smith, Steve Semlitz/Cathy Glazer, Daryl Roth/True
Love Productions, Susan Dietz/Mort Swinsky, Knitting Factory
Entertainment and with Ahmir ‘Questlove’ Thompson.
PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE:
The Chicago performance schedule for FELA! is as follows:
Tuesday, February 19 at 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, February 20 at 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, February 21 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, February 22 at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, February 23 at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.
TICKET INFORMATION
Individual tickets for FELA! range from $20-$70. Tickets are available on Ticketmaster.com
and the Arie Crown Theater Box Office (2301 South Lake Shore Drive).
Group Sales are available at the Arie Crown Theater Box Office at
312.791.6320 with $5.00 off per ticket for groups of 20+ (excluding
Saturday evening and the fourth price level for each performance).
For more information on FELA!, visit www.felaonbroadway.com
.
