The musical Fela! opened on Broadway in January 2010, and won eleven Tony nominations and three more awards later in the year. Now in Fall 2011, Fela! is hitting the road, opening in Washington D.C., New Haven, Detroit, Toronto and other cities. Fela! is an unprecedented landmark for African music in mainstream American culture. This is all the more amazing when you consider what an edgy, controversial character Fela Analukapo Kuti really was. In this program, we hear excerpts from the cast recording, and new Fela reissues. We meet the star of the Broadway show, Sahr Ngaujah. And we hear from two of Fela’s children, including bandleader Seun Kuti, on the man, the myth, and the musical. [Produced by Banning Eyre. Originally aired 02-15-2011]
