KalakutHER: Queen of Fela's Republic
Part of Open Works Festival Montgomery
Now on sale to members. Login or become a member to unlock priority booking. On general sale from 10am on Sat 13 June.
Become a memberOn sale to members from 10am on Sat 6 June. On general sale from 10am on Sat 13 June.
About
Open Works Festival Presents a work in progress, KalakutHER: Queen of Fela's Republic.
18 February 1977. One thousand soldiers stormed the Kalakuta Republic. They burned the compound to the ground, murdered Nigeria's matriarch of activism, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, and brutalised 37 women in an attempt to silence the Afrobeat movement forever. They failed.
The Kalakuta Queens - wives, fashion icons, creative collaborators, and fierce activists -rebuilt the revolution from the ashes.
Approaching the 50th anniversary of the raid, KalakutHER brings their untold testimonies to the stage. This visceral work-in-progress fuses explosive live percussion, physical theatre, and first-hand accounts - shaped through the directorial evolution of DYCP-supported artist Segun Ogundipe, whose journey from performer to director is woven into the very DNA of the work.
KalakutHER is a raw, celebratory, and urgent reclamation of the women who didn't just back the music - they kept it alive.
