Sahr Ngaujah (center)
The return summer engagement of the 2009 bio-musical Fela!, based on the life of Fela Kuti as inspired by Carlos Moore’s book Fela: This Bitch of a Life, opened last night to somewhat mixed but generally positive reviews. For the record, the creative team includes Jim Lewis (book, addl. lyrics), Bill T. Jones (book, direction, choreography), Fela Kuti (lyrics, music), Aaron Johnson (addl. music, orchestration, music direction), Jordan McLean (addl. music), Marina Draghici (sets, costumes), Robert Wierzel (lights), Robert Kaplowitz (sound), Peter Nigrini (projections), and Cookie Jordan (hair, makeup). The cast includes Sahr Ngaujah (Fela), Paulette Ivory (Sandra), Rasaan-Elijah Green (Djembe-“Mustafa”), Ismael Kouyaté (Ismael), Gelan Lambert (Egungun, etc.), and Melanie Marshall (Funmilayo).
Dan Bacalzo (Theater Mania): Ultimately, the main reason to see Fela! remains the driving beat of the music coupled with the show’s highly kinetic dances. The talented company throw themselves into Jones’ spirited choreography, which is mostly characterized by hip gyrations that are both earthy and sexual.
Ben Brantley (N.Y. Times): Fela! incorporates the spirit of summertime insurrection as infectiously as any show I can think of. As staged by the choreographer Bill T. Jones, and written by Mr. Jones with Jim Lewis, Fela! translates one man’s life into a nonstop banquet of movement both sensuous and angry. And though this production has been on the road … it shows no signs whatsoever of flagging. … The number that best captures this production’s essence comes early. It’s a piece resonantly titled “Originality/Yellow Fever,” and it allows the different performers to embody the elements of Afrobeat style. There’s no question that they’re all drinking from the same musical source, but each also emerges as a brilliant solo artist. … In Fela! dancing isn’t just entertainment – it’s life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Matthew Murray (Talkin’ Broadway): When the musical premiered Off-Broadway in 2008, and moved to the Main Stem the following year, it was in a suffocatingly environmental production that strove to not just immerse you but catapult you onstage. … This version of the show, simply put, can’t do that – and doesn’t really try. It’s understandable … but this innate inability has led to an evening that’s more conventional and less effective than what New York audiences had previously been exposed to. … You get a decent approximation but not the conflagration you’re constantly being promised. Still, these are concerns of sharpest interest to New Yorkers who’ve already experienced Fela! … If you somehow missed the show on its first two Manhattan appearances, this version is good enough to warrant a first look and a listen.
David Sheward (Back Stage): The touring version is making a brief Broadway summer stopover, but it feels more like a party than a challenging piece of political theater. … In the previous incarnations it felt as if the Nigerian army really was right outside of the stage door and you risked arrest just by being in your seat. It was thrillingly immediate and brought a dimension of fear to the proceedings. … Despite this ratcheting down of intensity, Sahr Ngaujah retains his blazing charisma and dazzling musical and dramatic versatility as he continues in his Tony-nominated performance of the title role. … Once again, a highlight of the show is an accelerating challenge dance in which each member of the powerhouse chorus gets a white-hot solo. But the real star is Ngaujah.
[Bruce Kimmel]. In this honest memoir, Kimmel charts his career from Bay Cities to Varese Sarabande to the launch of his Kritzerland label. Of course, he writes about the stars on his recordings – including Elaine Stritch, Carol Channing, Donna Murphy, and Stephen Sondheim – and Kimmel has a gift for telling tales without grinding axes, though he is somewhat cutting about his colleagues at Varese and Fynsworth Alley. Most illuminating are his ideas on the songs he’s produced.
[Kathleen Riley]. Before Fred and Ginger, there was Fred and Adele. In this first comprehensive study of the earlier duo, Riley traces the siblings from their humble Midwest origins to their vaudeville stardom and, ultimately, to their breakup when Adele married into aristocracy and Fred headed for Hollywood. In the process, Riley helps us understand the background that led to Fred’s later success.
[Peter Filichia]. Filichia is a perfect cheerleader for musicals and their creators. In this breezy collection of essays, he borrows the sports convention to explore fifty years of Broadway musical history – the MVP performers, producers, directors, and choreographers of each year in the past half-century. It is the perfect companion to his 2010 collection, 
.
[Benjamin Sears]. Sears brings together a broad range of the most insightful primary and secondary writings about Berlin. Grouped by chronology, the some 40 pieces, many written by Berlin himself, include offerings from the earliest accounts of journalists to later recollections of his collaborators in their autobiographies. Reading these selections side by side lends a new perspective and appreciation of the composer’s genius.
[Gerald Schoenfeld]. Completed one month before his death, Schonfeld’s autobiography is a captivating read. He recounts his rise from house lawyer to producer of Broadway’s greatest successes (A Chorus Line) and greatest misses (Amour). Yet this is not just the story of one man but of the last 70 years of Broadway. Schoenfeld often said he saved the Shuberts, and this memoir reveals how he did so, while also critically assessing many of his missteps along the way.
[Seth Rudetsky]. Justin may have the wrong look, the wrong hobbies, and the wrong friends, but he has the perfect plan to turn it all around. Rudetsky’s first novel for young adults is heartfelt and frequently laugh-out-loud funny. It’s not your average teen novel, but writer (and musical theater maven) Rudetsky is anything but average. Light-hearted and entertaining throughout, the book ends with a serious postscript to young readers having a hard time dealing with high school life.
[Original Film Cast]. In this collective memoir, a dozen surviving Jets and Sharks (and Girls) from West Side Story share their stories about the Oscar-winning film. Yet, it is not just about the movie, it’s about being a member of the tight-knit community of professional dancers. One of the most compelling stories is from Tony Mordente, who was cast as one of the film’s Jets, but whose wife Chita Rivera (the original Broadway Anita) wasn’t cast among the film’s Sharks.
[Steven Sater]. This brief paperback is precisely what the title implies: an insight into the lyrics of the Tony-winning musical. In vivid detail, Sater writes about the origins of the show’s songs and their development over the production’s eight-year gestation. He also writes about his partnership with composer Duncan Sheik and about working with the original cast members.
[Fred Bronson]. For the first time, the children of the film tell their stories about making The Sound of Music, from auditions to rehearsals to their summer in Salzburg. As a bonus, there is a DVD with home movie footage, as well as numerous facsimiles stuffed into the book’s pockets – candid photos, letters home, diary pages, costume designs, premiere tickets, and more. It is a unique and interesting compilation.
[Felicia Ricci]. In January 2010, Ricci began her journey from selling software to understudying the green witch Elphaba in Wicked – her first professional gig … ever. This humorous memoir recounts the greenhorn’s journey, adapted from her blog entries like “Songs of Death” and “The Week I Didn’t Poop.” It may not be easy being green but is sure is fascinating.
to mixed reviews. Filmed live in Melbourne, Australia, last September, the creative team includes Andrew Lloyd Webber (book and music), Glenn Slater (book and lyrics), Ben Elton (book), Charles Hart (additional lyrics), Simon Phillips (stage direction) and Brett Sullivan (film direction). The cast includes Ben Lewis (Phantom), Anna O’Byrne (Christine), Sharon Millerchip (Meg), Simon Gleeson (Raoul), Maria Mercedes (Madame), and Jack Lyll (Gustave).
to generally positive reviews. The creative team includes Time Rice (book and lyrics), Andrew Lloyd Webber (music). The cast includes Ricky Martin (Ché), Michael Cerveris (Juan Perón), Elena Roger (Evita), Max von Essen (Magaldi) and Rachel Potter (Mistress).
to generally positive reviews. The creative team includes Michael John LaChiusa (book, lyrics, music), Chris Fenwick (music direction), Michael Starobin (orchestration), and Walter Trarbach (sound effects). The cast includes Mary Testa with D.C. Anderson, Stanley Bahorek, Theresa McCarthy, Julia Murney, Andrew Samonsky, and Tally Sessions.
and 
, died last night at his home in Southampton, N.Y. He was 90 and among the last of Broadway’s Golden Age writers. When I created 
, and an invitation for another meal, this time just to chat. Every other month thereafter, we met for lunch and talked shop.