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'The Golden Stool, or the Story of Nana Yaa Asantewaa' is an opera performance that debuts at the London's Barbican on 14 October.


https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2024/event/the-golden-stool-or-the-story-of-nana-yaa-asantewaa 


The performance takes 12 classical opera songs, including Beethoven's 'Ode to Joy' and reworks them to tell the compelling story of Warrior Queen Nana Yaa Asantewaa through an all-female cast. 


In our 8th episode in season 6, we speak to the creator and artistic director behind this afropera - Belgium-based Gorges Ocloo.


Gorges is a multi-disciplinary artist whose expertise includes performance art, contemporary dance – he is a stage director, librettist and composer and co-artistic director of Antwerp-based performing arts theatre Toneelhuis in Belgium.

If you’ve got an interest in opera, you might like to listen to our Season 6 episodes 1&2 interview with Venus Bushfires founder Helen Epega and opera singer Louisa Martin.

S6Ep1: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5fCUNwhzCoh5UlB3nX7EGe
S6Ep2: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7toXwa7tFhnKcDyB9ewiBd


This Pidgin Opera performance also challenged views on opera with the incorporation of Pidgin and other unconventional language styles. 

The music in this episode is made exclusively for AKADi Magazine by Kyekyeku and the Super Opong Stars and is called 'Life No Dey Easy'.

AKADi Magazine is a digital publication connecting Ghanaians in Ghana and the Diaspora, visit us at www.akadimagazine.com , www.akadimagazine.co.uk and www.msbwrites.co.uk for all your community news.

Join our socials here: https://linktr.ee/AKADiMag

Send us Fan Mail

Gorges Ocloo is a multi-disciplinary artist whose expertise includes performance art, contemporary dance – he is a stage director, librettist and composer and co-artistic director of Antwerp-based performing arts theatre Toneelhuis in Belgium.



In this episode, Gorges talks about his AfrOpera - The Golden Stool, or the story of Nana Yaa Asantewaa, which comes to London's Barbican on 14 October.


This is a retelling of the Queenmother of Ejisu's story performed through 10 women of African descent.



This AfrOpera uses key classics from composers including Bizet and Handel to deliver a performance that challenges norms in opera while retelling the story of a powerful Asante woman.



Nana Yaa Asantewaa stood up to the British in 1900, rallied her people to fight back against them to defend and protect the sovereign independence of the Golden Stool.

The music in this episode is made exclusively for AKADi Magazine by Kyekyeku and the Super Opong Stars and is called 'Life No Dey Easy'.

AKADi Magazine is a digital publication connecting Ghanaians in Ghana and the Diaspora, visit us at www.akadimagazine.com , www.akadimagazine.co.uk and www.msbwrites.co.uk for all your community news.

Join our socials here: https://linktr.ee/AKADiMag

Send us Fan Mail

The ‘Family Ties: Adamah Papers’ exhibition at the Black Cultural Archives in Brixton, London is a collection of letters, documents and old newspapers belonging to an Ewe Fia (king).
 
These papers are significant because they are thought to be the first of their kind in Britain (and maybe the world) to document Ghana’s Ewe community in such a manner.
Charles tells us more.

Read the full story here:
https://msbwrites.co.uk/2018/06/25/an-archive-of-ghanas-past-on-paper-the-adamah-papers/

MisBeee Writes delivers audio and visual content on people of African origin and provides content to AKADi Magazine. The channel is complemented by two blogsite http://misbeee.blogspot.co.uk and https://msbwrites.co.uk and supports digital magazine www.akadimagazine.co.uk with audio-visual content.

The music in this episode is made exclusively for AKADi Magazine by Kyekyeku and the Super Opong Stars and is called 'Life No Dey Easy'.

AKADi Magazine is a digital publication connecting Ghanaians in Ghana and the Diaspora, visit us at www.akadimagazine.com , www.akadimagazine.co.uk and www.msbwrites.co.uk for all your community news.

Join our socials here: https://linktr.ee/AKADiMag

Send us Fan Mail

Epistles From Nkrumah Krom is a thought-provoking poetry performance designed with a symbolic language to reflect on contemporary issues from the vibrant streets of Accra.


Poetivist and friends will take you on a journey through the captivating world of words and emotions on 15 June 2024.

Get ready to be moved, inspired, and entertained by the power of spoken word. Don't miss out on this unique opportunity to experience poetry like never before!

Come join us for an evening of soul-stirring poetry at our in-person event at Inspired by Africa Unit 1-2 Croydon Boxpark, CR0 1LD.


https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/epistles-from-nkrumah-krom-poetry-as-told-by-poetivist-friends-tickets-910873054827?aff=erelexpmlt

The music in this episode is made exclusively for AKADi Magazine by Kyekyeku and the Super Opong Stars and is called 'Life No Dey Easy'.

AKADi Magazine is a digital publication connecting Ghanaians in Ghana and the Diaspora, visit us at www.akadimagazine.com , www.akadimagazine.co.uk and www.msbwrites.co.uk for all your community news.

Join our socials here: https://linktr.ee/AKADiMag

Send us Fan Mail

Executive producer Emmanuel Sampene talks about schooling in Ghana, studying in the USA and pivoting from a career solely in academia to creating his 3-D animation series Turkey Pinky Pants.


'Turkey Pinky Pants' has been selected for the Cinemagic Hollywood Film Festival in the Best Animation category thanks to the hard work of his team, which includes Director, Bradley J. Krause, and talented supervising animator, Sivakumar Krishnamoort . 


He tells us more about the show, and his goal to make the show a household name.

The music in this episode is made exclusively for AKADi Magazine by Kyekyeku and the Super Opong Stars and is called 'Life No Dey Easy'.

AKADi Magazine is a digital publication connecting Ghanaians in Ghana and the Diaspora, visit us at www.akadimagazine.com , www.akadimagazine.co.uk and www.msbwrites.co.uk for all your community news.

Join our socials here: https://linktr.ee/AKADiMag

Send us Fan Mail

Executive producer Emmanuel Sampene’s 3-D animation series Turkey Pinky Pants was inspired by the bedtime stories he used to tell his children.


'Turkey Pinky Pants' has been selected for the Cinemagic Hollywood Film Festival in the Best Animation category thanks to the hard work of his team, which includes Director, Bradley J. Krause, and talented supervising animator, Sivakumar Krishnamoort . 


He tells us what inspired the children’s series and his goal to make the show a household name.

The music in this episode is made exclusively for AKADi Magazine by Kyekyeku and the Super Opong Stars and is called 'Life No Dey Easy'.

AKADi Magazine is a digital publication connecting Ghanaians in Ghana and the Diaspora, visit us at www.akadimagazine.com , www.akadimagazine.co.uk and www.msbwrites.co.uk for all your community news.

Join our socials here: https://linktr.ee/AKADiMag

Send us Fan Mail

In this two-part episode, we speak to two inspiring women who are central to this opera - Louisa Adjoa Martin who has over 20 years’ experience as an opera singer performing with symphony choruses and is a soprano voice in this opera.



And Helen Epega, also known as the Venus Bushfires, who composed and wrote Song Queen: A Pidgin Opera and is the lead vocalist in the performance.

‘Song Queen: A Pidgin Opera’ celebrates the power of song, honours African cultures, and is a uniting force that champions languages, dialects and slangs that are considered by some to not be the standard. 

The music in this episode is made exclusively for AKADi Magazine by Kyekyeku and the Super Opong Stars and is called 'Life No Dey Easy'.

AKADi Magazine is a digital publication connecting Ghanaians in Ghana and the Diaspora, visit us at www.akadimagazine.com , www.akadimagazine.co.uk and www.msbwrites.co.uk for all your community news.

Join our socials here: https://linktr.ee/AKADiMag

Send us Fan Mail

In this two-part episode, we speak to two inspiring women who are central to this opera - Helen Epega, also known as the Venus Bushfires, who composed and wrote Song Queen: A Pidgin Opera and is the lead vocalist in the performance.

And Louisa Adjoa Martin who has over 20 years’ experience as an opera singer performing with symphony choruses and is a soprano voice in this opera.

‘Song Queen: A Pidgin Opera’ celebrates the power of song, honours African cultures, and is a uniting force that champions languages, dialects and slangs that are considered by some to not be the standard. 

The music in this episode is made exclusively for AKADi Magazine by Kyekyeku and the Super Opong Stars and is called 'Life No Dey Easy'.

AKADi Magazine is a digital publication connecting Ghanaians in Ghana and the Diaspora, visit us at www.akadimagazine.com , www.akadimagazine.co.uk and www.msbwrites.co.uk for all your community news.

Join our socials here: https://linktr.ee/AKADiMag

Send us Fan Mail

Autism is a developmental brain condition that affects people’s ability to communicate, and influences how sufferers process the world around them. In this episode, we look at the story of one mother who shares how she got to terms with her son's mental health condition.

AKADi Magazine editor Abena recounts their story and draws us in with his soothing tones as we discover whether the couple make it in time.

This piece has been adapted from a MisBeee Writes review blogpost here: https://msbwrites.co.uk/2013/09/01/mother-keeps-hope-alive-for-autistic-son/

Your Stories, Your Communities is a series brought to you by MisBeee Writes which aims to bring more colour to blog posts featured on www.msbwrites.co.uk.

MisBeee Writes delivers audio and visual content on people of African origin and provides content to AKADi Magazine. 

The channel is complemented by two blogsite http://misbeee.blogspot.co.uk and https://msbwrites.co.uk and supports digital magazine www.akadimagazine.co.uk with audio-visual content.

The music in this episode is made exclusively for AKADi Magazine by Kyekyeku and the Super Opong Stars and is called 'Life No Dey Easy'.

AKADi Magazine is a digital publication connecting Ghanaians in Ghana and the Diaspora, visit us at www.akadimagazine.com , www.akadimagazine.co.uk and www.msbwrites.co.uk for all your community news.

Join our socials here: https://linktr.ee/AKADiMag

Send us Fan Mail

Marie-Claire is the author of ‘One For Sorrow, Two For Joy’ - a book that explores the impact of unresolved childhood trauma in adult life.

She wrote the book during the COVID-19 pandemic and recalls writing  54,000 words in two months, which she describes as "unnaturally fast". 

Listen to author Marie-Claire as she explores themes linked to trauma, superstition and healing in this podcast episode.


She also explains her writing process and gives us a sneak peek into details of her second novel.

The music in this episode is made exclusively for AKADi Magazine by Kyekyeku and the Super Opong Stars and is called 'Life No Dey Easy'.

AKADi Magazine is a digital publication connecting Ghanaians in Ghana and the Diaspora, visit us at www.akadimagazine.com , www.akadimagazine.co.uk and www.msbwrites.co.uk for all your community news.

Join our socials here: https://linktr.ee/AKADiMag