As an adolescent, I found comfort in the lyrics of several gospel artists, one of which was BeBe Winans. In the mist of my storms, I was able to find refuge in the smooth uplifting melodies of his albums, which ministered directly to my situations.
Charles Randolph-Wright
With that said, it brought me great joy to hear that the director of Motown: the Musical, Charles Randolph Wright, announced that he has written and is to direct the world-premiere stage musical Born For This: The BeBe Winans story at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, GA debuting January 2016 and running through February 14, 2016.
Born For This has been in the works for nearly a decade, and has been stated to showcase BeBe and CeCe Winans “heart-warming and hilarious journey toward self- discovery”.
Detroit natives BeBe and CeCe Winans, youngest siblings of the Winans family dynasty, experience the ultimate in culture shocks when invited to join Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker’s Praise The Lord Network television show. The teenaged Winans become not only television celebrities, but also the “adopted children” of the Bakkers, integrating TV evangelism in Pineville, North Carolina. As BeBe and CeCe encounter fame, fortune, and even a young Whitney Houston, BeBe must learn to balance his desire for success with his true calling.
This production featuring new music written by BeBe, will reportedly incorporate a new generation of Winans to play the young brother and sister.
The full cast has not yet been released. However, during a private reading/workshop that had media mogul and Broadway producer, Oprah in the audience, as well as legendary Cicely Tyson, a few familiar faces were seen. Those faces included Syndee Winters, Alan H. Green, Dyllon Burnside, & Bryan Terrell Clark.
Bebe Winans recently did an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution talking about the development of this new musical. Check out a snippet below:
On sharing his memories: “So much of it is a coming-of-age story, where we left home (in Detroit) and all the things we knew, which was pretty much a black-oriented school and church. And we were thrust into the South, where there were 4,000 (PTL
Ministry) employees and four of them were African-American.
“It was a life-changing experience. We dealt with being away from home, we dealt with racism, we dealt with little things that were so different. Sports to me was basketball. And I found myself rock-climbing. I didn’t know that was a sport…”
On collaborating with “Motown the Musical” director Charles Randolph-Wright:“He’s very, very talented, and he knows my story, so it was easy to trust him. One thing I never will forget, he brought (a scene) to me, and it talked about threats on me and my sister. And I said, ‘I don’t remember no threats, Charles.’
“Then I was having dinner with Jim Bakker, who is still an incredible friend and father figure to me, love him with all my heart. And I gave him some of the script and told him that I had allowed Charles to take some leeway and that he had put in that we had had some threats. And Jim looked at me said, ‘Oh, there were a lot of threats.’
“He had protected us from them.”
On his Broadway hopes for the musical: “That’s the Alliance’s goal, that’s our goal, that’s the Arena Stage’s goal. Oh yes, it is Broadway bound!”
READ THE ENTIRE INTERVIEW ON ARTSCULTURE BLOG HERE
Just the idea of this production hits home for me, seeing that I spent much of my spare time in church. Strongly encourage those in the Atlanta area to mark this production on their calendars. I know how much of a blessing his music was to my life and I can only imagine what blessings are in store for those who take the time to support this man of God. I’ll be first in line when it comes to Broadway.
