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* First Class Printing * Best Quality Paper * Competetive prices for all your needs (Business cards, logo’s, Stationary, menus etc) * Free Delivery Contact us to discuss your design and printing needs ,IFE IN #OLOUR 3PECIAL OFFER k /RDER POSTCARD SIZE ¸YERS AND GET FREE inclusion in Life in Colour 4O ORDER YOUR LEA¹ET ¹YER CALL ,IFE IN #OLOUR ON [email protected] * Conditions apply. Offer ends 1st January 2012. Deposit required. Deposit is non-refundable if you cancel an order. You have 3 consultations with the designer. After 3 consultation meetings (on the phone or one to one) you will be charged extra. Delivery within the London area only. PRINT PRICE EXAMPLES ! ,EA¸ET POSTCARD SIZE ! ,EA¸ET £ £199 London’s No’1 Multicultural Entertainment Pocket Guide KAI MUSIC THEATRE COMEDY COMMUNITY Emelie Sande The Riots - Tricycle Theatre Gina Yashere SPOKEN WORD OneNess Sankara Single launch International Mens Day UNSIGNED & HAPPENING G-Range Issue 36 | November 2011 www.lifeincolour.uk.com Life in Colour talks to award winning writer Rikki Beadle Blair SHALOM BABY by Rikki Beadle Blair LIC Shalom Baby is set in the 1930’s about a mixed race couple. What was your inspiration behind this bold play? RB Ten years ago I visited the Holocaust museum in Washington DC and I was moved to my core. It mentioned the inclusion of Blacks, gypsies, homosexuals in the camps - but there was so little information compared to the inspiring determination of the Jewish people to tell their story. I became determined to expand people’s knowledge of the breath and diversity of the Nazi racial policies in a way that was human and romantic and funny as well as painful. LIC The play takes us from Berlin to Brooklyn. How have audiences responded to so far? RB The response has been brilliant. I think people have been surprised at how funny the play is as well as tearful. It’s been electrifying so far. LIC (Z H ÄST[OLH[YL ^YP[LY KPYLJ[VY T\ZPJPHU KLZPNULY ¶ [V UHTL I\[ H ML^ `V\ OH]L ILLU very successful. What would you say were your career highlights? RB Hmmm, that’s a tricky one! Driving in a convertible along Sunset Boulevard with my cast to our Hollywood premiere.... touring for three years with the stage version of ‘Fit’ and working with over 20,000 school kids and knowing it was making a real difference. Having my own TV show, ‘Metrosexuality’. All three of my plays at the legendary Theatre Royal Stratford East. My life is amazing - full of creativity, inspiring people and random hugs on the street. LIC What are your ambitions for the play and do you have any another projects in the pipeline? RB My ambitions for every project are always ridiculously epic: to change the world, person by person. To make them laugh, cry, think, reassess and stake their claim to their equal share of this world and offer their support to the rest of humanity. Obviously it would also be nice to have the show transfer and tour and go West End and Broadway and all that great fun stuff. But bottom line? My ambition is to do my job well - which is to give people their money’s worth. 0»T ÄUPZOPUN LKP[PUN H ZOVY[ ÄST MVY ;OL +YPSS /HSS HIV\[ ;LLU Z\PJPKL JHSSLK º(SP]L» J\YH[PUN a new writing festival here at the Theatre Royal... and I have a book coming out in November called ‘What I Learned Today’. It’s an empowerment philosophy book. Shalom Baby Theatre Royal Stratford East .LYY` 9HMÅLZ :X\HYL London E15 1BN www.stratfordeast.com/whats_on/ shalombaby.shtml. Tel.:020 8534 0310 Price: £10 - £22 2HP H [HSLU[LK SHK` ^OV PZ UV[ Q\Z[ ÅPY[PUN ^P[O T\ZPJ 1. How long have you been writing and performing and how did you start in the business? I have been writing since I was about 8 or 9 years old but I began singing, making sounds and prancing around the house since I could probably walk. Music has been with me my whole life. I have done lots of performances, lyric writing, being in groups etc. Now I’m taking a solo path. 2. If you were to describe your style what would it be? I love creative writing, anything from songs and poems to short stories. I write songs that other females can relate to, but perhaps putting it in a way or into concepts that haven’t really been written about before. My style is cheeky, sprinkled with real emotion. My songs usually have a subtle/hidden meaning behind it as opposed to in your face or blunt. I don’t write standard old heartbreak songs. 3. We hear that you also run your own business. Do you see yourself as the female, British equivalent to Jay Z? @LZ KLÄUP[LS` /L HUK THU` V[OLYZ HYL HU PUZWPYH[PVU 4\ZPJHS LU[YLWYLUL\YZ OH]L helped me to understand that you can do a lot if you put your mind to it, with or without a label/ publishing deal and even before you make it. I have a background in marketing and publishing, so I set up my own street team, distribution and marketing company called, ‘Get Me Exposure’ with my business partner a few years ago. My company has helped my musical endeavors, business knowledge and has given me contacts and other skill sets. 4. What are your plans for the future? There are plenty of things in the pipeline, more music, more videos, publishing, touring- [OL SV[ ;OL ÄYZ[ [OPUN WLVWSL JHU SVVR V\[ MVY PZ T` UL_[ ZPUNSL º-SPY[» HUK T` ,7 \U titled so far) along with performances around the UK. 5. Tell us about your recent release and where we can get more information on your video. º-SPY[» PZ T` KLI\[ ZPUNSL ^YP[[LU I` T`ZLSM HUK WYVK\JLK I` 5\[[` 7 >YL[JO 7YVMLZZVY .YLLU 0[»Z V\[ UV^ VU P;\ULZ HSVUN ^P[O H +Y\T HUK )HZZ YLTP_ I` Muwookie. The video was shot with Luti Media, which you can catch a peak of on my YouTube Channel: YouTube.com/KaiKaiMusic. www.kaikaimusic.co.uk JB ROSE “Diary of a Singer” S o far things have been going pretty well with my X\LZ[ [V ILJVTPUN H M\SS`ÅLKNLK ZPUNLY HNHPU 4` friend has hooked me up with a band that performs funk and soul tunes most weekends and with the help of another friend I’ve been forced to revamp my wardrobe. However, work in progress continues to be reducing my hips and thighs, which I’ve been ungraciously told won’t happen because of my heritage (I must terminate these positive people in my life -LOL). I still need to write UL^ ZVUNZ ÄUK H T\ZPJ WYVK\JLY H Z[\KPV [V YLJVYK everything in, produce the songs… Oh! And there’s the website to create, and who am I going to co-write the songs with as my guitar playing is atrocious. Stop! Time for deep breaths, I think I’m heading for a panic attack. This stuff is never as simple as it looks. So wasn’t it a wonderful gift one day whilst hanging out at the Albany Theatre cafe I saw a friend of mine talking to a guy with a guitar beside him. I went over and after a girly chat; her companion introduced himself as Mr fantastic (jokingly of course). He asked me what JB Z[VVK MVY HUK 0 ZHPK 1HTLZ )YV^U ;OL IHU[LY ÅV^LK and we eventually shared our interest in music, styles HUK PUÅ\LUJLZ ;OL ILZ[ WHY[ ^HZ [OH[ 0 MV\UK V\[ [OH[ he loves working with singers. As I’m trying not to let opportunities walk out the door anymore I asked him if he would write with me and… Wallah! The deed is done, the dye is cast. As of next week I’m writing new tunes with Mr Fantastic. The new dilemma is my anxiety about my song-writing skills. Will he think I’m whack! Do I have anything new or interesting to say in my lyrics? Too late now, the date is set and I’m hurtling towards more doubt. So here goes, onwards and upwards. Photography by Robert Day WIN FREE TICKETS TO SEE SHALOM BABY SIMPLY EMAIL YOUR DETAILS TO [email protected] “A Black Madonna, A West African Hero or A Sovereign willing to do anything to reign?”, I caught up with the director and cast of the West African play by Dean Atta ‘Queen Pokou’. 1. Give a brief summary of the play? In Ghana, an Ashanti Princess’s father and brother were murdered by her uncle for power and inheritance to the ‘Golden Stool’. Interweaving seven mythologies conveying how the Princess crosses THE RIVER WITH HER PEOPLE SOME SAY SHE SACRIµCED HER SON /NCE OVER Princess Abraha Pokou creates a new tribe the ‘Baoule’. 2. How important is female empowerment in the play? Karlina Grace (Queen Pokou): It’s really important, since one woman struggles to lead her people through tough times, saving their lives. It’s so important that ‘Stonecrabs Theatre’ is sharing her great ACHIEVEMENTS AS A HISTORICAL µGURE 3. Is there a biblical reference to the story of Moses? Chris Rochester (Diviner): Yes, with regards to the Exodus, the crossing of a huge river and creation of a new nation. There are OTHER BIBLICAL REFERENCES SUCH AS THE fSACRIµCEg OF *ESUS TO f1UEEN Poku’s’ son for their people. 4. Outline your role in the play? Stephanie Yamson (Akwa Boni): I play the crafty envious sister of ‘Queen Pokou’ who was always in her shadow. We see my journey WITH HER AND MY INVOLVEMENT IN HER SONgS PLANNED SACRIµCE TH .OVEMBER 1UEEN 0OKU 4HE .EW $IORAMA 4HEATRE 4RITON 3TREET Regents Place, London NW1 3BF, 0207 WWWNEWDIORAMACOM Fiona Frimpong QUEEN POKU DRAY DELTA Dray Delta is a lyricist from East London. At 16, Dray battled artists such as Crazy Titch and Durty Goodz on pirate radio. His single ‘Bobby Brownz’, is thought to be the funniest home-truth video around. Currently he’s taking a BA in Film and Media, and is an ambassador for No Labels - an independent record Company owned by G-Range. He recently performed at the 02 and his mix tape ‘Flow-Reel Two’, is available for download. www.draydelta.com ANGELA RICCI The classically trained singer, actress and model Angela Ricci debuted as a teenage soloist for the youth Orchestra of Verona. Italian with Congolese origins, Angela is a Goldsmiths University graduate. While studying she sang with choirs and vocal ensembles (with Eska Mtungwazi singing for 4H[[OL^ /LYILY[ HUK ;Y\L 0UNYLKPLU[Z H OPWOVWM\UR IHUK ZOL currently features in. Her collaborations include; producers from Monteverde Records in Rome, DJ’s from France and headlining at the Jazz Club of Turin, Italy. Recent performances include: Africa Fashion Week 2011, and The Big Issue’s 20th Anniversary. Angela opens for Yolanda Brown at the Jazz Cafe this December. www.starnow.co.uk/missangelaricci G- RANGE Hackney born G-Range is both a producer and a rapper. With eight years experience, this versatile artist boasts video releases: ‘Directions’, ‘I Love my Robot’ and currently, ‘Money Back’. A force to be reckoned with, his harsh reality lyrics, ‘R.I.P. Life’ is a big hit on the UK circuit. G-Range is the owner of the company ‘NO Labels’. Ladies may YLJHSS H JLY[HPU JVUÄKLU[ JOHW MYVT JOHUULS »Z º>OLU >VTLU 9\SLK ;OL >VYSK» .9HUNL ÄUPZOLK UK VU HU PZSHUK ^OLYL ^VTLU ^LYL THZ[LY VM all things. The world is G-Range’s oyster. www.g-range.com UNSIGNED & HAPPENIN’
