Groove, rhythm and good humor… This is the program of the musical review Black Legends. Presented at the Bobino theater in Paris until January 8, 2023, it traces the evolution of African-American music in the 20th century.
From the period of the Cotton Club around 1930 until the presidency of Barack Obama in 2009, the sequences follow one another at a crazy pace, in a whirlwind of 200 costumes.
Afro cut and cake shovel shirt, on stage, the disco makes its entrance. Behind the flashy costumes, the artists tell the great story of Afro-American music through thirty-six mythical paintings. “It’s a revolution already, the blacks were starting to go on TV, that reminds us that we have already come a long way so it is also a message of hope and that it makes us continue and never give up because things change”, assures the choreographer Thomas Bimaï.
segregation, racism, Black Legends also evokes the fight of blacks for the right to equality through the greatest hits of soul music. From Cab Calloway to Beyonce, passing by Ray Charles, Otis Redding, Tina Turner, Aretha Franklin and Withney Houston, the six musicians are in a trance, the fourteen singers dance with all their soul. “It’s more than a pleasure, to sing it, to play it, to live it, to interpret it, it’s really good”, rejoices the dancer Thomas Garcia. “Singing for the sake of singing is not enough! They are political, they are concerned, they have an opinion and that’s what I look for in my artists”, confirms Valéry Rodriguez, author and director of the show.
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“Black Legend” Bobino Theater at 21 hours until January 8, 2023
14-20, rue de la Gaîté – 75014 Paris
