Etuo Ato Bare: a huge success!

Jason's play finished its run this weekend, and it was great! I hope he manages to score a video or DVD so you guys can all see it. Amazing drumming, incredible dancing, great story ... and one especially talented abruni actor. It played to sold-out audiences nearly every night.

So, the play follows the story of the Ashanti, a tribe from central Ghana, from their formation in around 1700 through two centuries of battles with the British, who wanted to make their land a protectorate.

Here are a few pictures:

Hmmm, someone must have forgotten to add "starring Jason Hooper":



Nkonwasoafoo (warriors) in stylized poses re-enact the seige at the fort at Kumasi. Jason's character is in the circle of ropes in the centre, representing their entrapment in the fort.



Here's Jason giving his scariest, meanest look as he prowls the stage looking for the prize of the hidden "golden stool."



A battle scene between the abruni and Ashanti:



The character the play is all about, Yaa Asantewaa (played by Rebecca Dorgbadzi), in chains following her arrest:



Writer and director Godwin Kotey is hailed by the cast after the final performance (there's Jason, grinning, seated on the floor in front of him):



The abruni cast gathers with the actor who hilariously played their translator in the play:



They're a pretty diverse bunch to play the "white folks," don't you think? Kind of funny.

I have a few more pictures, but Blogger seems to be having problems with adding photos today. I'll add them another day.