Michelle Williams to Join Touring Production of Fela!

The Shakespeare Theatre Company and producers Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Will Smith & Jada Pinkett Smith and Ruth & Stephen Hendel are pleased to announce that Grammy Award-winning recording artist and former member of Destiny's Child Michelle Williams will join the national tour of the hit award-winning Broadway musical FELA! when it opens at STC's Sidney Harman Hall (610 F Street NW) on January 29, 2013.

"I am thrilled to join the cast of FELA!," said Michelle Williams. "This musical journey is one that I've wanted to be a part of since first seeing it on stage in 2008. The sounds, the passion and the politics of Fela Kuti have long intrigued me and speak to my heart. I am simply honored."

FELA!, the winner of three Tony Awards, is the true story of the legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti, whose soulful Afrobeat rhythms ignited a generation. Inspired by his mother, a civil rights champion, he defied a corrupt and oppressive military government and devoted his life and music to the struggle for freedom and human dignity. FELA! is a triumphant tale of courage, passion and love, featuring Fela Kuti's captivating music and the visionary direction and choreography of Bill T. Jones. Jones says of the production, "One has to experience it as much with one's hips as one's ears, eyes and mind." 

The production is part of the STC Presents Series which presents world class international productions to theatregoers in D.C. STC's Artistic Director Michael Kahn declared, "We intend to bring in the most innovative and highest quality of work. Our goal is to make sure we're presenting the best of many kinds of performances, the best of their fields, and I feel our STC Presents Series is just that." Other presentations in the STC Presents Series for the 2012-2013 Season include Black Watch and The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart from the National Theatre of Scotland and Les Liaisons Dangereuses from the Theâtre de l'Atelier in Paris, France.