In the works: Brer Rabbit for a new Brooklyn

Original artwork by LaRonda Davis
for Brer Rabbit The Opera
(image courtesy the artist)

Some rabbit ears, eh?

Brer Rabbit The Opera: A Funky Meditation On Gentrification [Work-in-Progress] won't get reviewed here now since it's incomplete, but I can tell you that the sold-out showing I attended last night at BRIC House gives me hope for good things to come.

This collaborative effort, developed during a BRIC Fireworks residency--with Aisha Cousins and Greg Tate with his Burnt Sugar the Arkestra Chamber leading a totally amazing team--strikes the right balance between fun and serious dissection of an issue of the moment. And it strikes it consistently and without pretension.

That's why I'm hoping Cousins and Tate will do two things: 1) trim the two hours down a bit; 2) work on making the dialogue and lyrics (especially in the opening scene) more clearly audible.

Read more about Brer Rabbit The Opera here:

Brooklyn’s Own Briar Patch: A Funk Opera Takes On Gentrification by Alexis Clements, Hyperallergic, January 22, 2015

Attend BRIC's Town Hall meeting, Brooklyn For Sale: The Price of Gentrification, A Community Town Hall, January 28, 7-9pm (free). For information, click here.

For general information on BRIC's Spring 2015 season, click here.