Samantha Williams to Host Screening of High School Production of Fela!

Broadway's Samantha Williams will host a free screening of the Kinder High School for the Performing Arts' production of Fela! on August 8 at 6:30PM ET. The school collaborated with Fela!’s co-conceiver and original producer Stephen Hendel to mount the show in February 2019. The production featured a cast of 34, an orchestra of 18 and design and management by students. Those interested can watch the screening on the Broadway Jackbox Twitch page and on Tiltify.

“When Kinder High School for the Performing Arts approached me to do the show, I was thrilled that students would finally be exposed to the incredible music and inspirational, relevant story of Fela Kuti,” said Hendel. “I am excited that this production will be shared with a wider audience and hope this screening can this can lead to more student productions of Fela!”

Kinder HSPVA produces an annual production to celebrate Black History Month. Donations will be accepted during the screening with all proceeds going to the non-profit organization HSPVA Friends to provide scholarships for current Kinder HSPVA students who have been involved in the Black History production.

Williams, who starred on Broadway in Dear Evan Hansen and will appear in the upcoming revival of Caroline, Or Change, graduated from Kinder HSPVA in 2015. She also starred in the school’s productions of Dreamgirls and The Wiz.

Williams will also co-host a preshow and intermission discussion with Hendel, co-host Alana Bright, a 2020 Kinder HSPVA graduate who appeared in the production, Sahr Ngaujah (who originated the title role in Fela! on and off-Broadway), director Mekeva McNeil, Justin Prescott and student performers Preston Parker and Tomi Akinwade.