THE APOLLO is a Feast
Oscar winning director Roger Ross Williams (2010 doc short Music by Prudence) must have broken his heart making The Apollo. Because there’s so much you can’t include. Opened in 1934 decades it was the pinhole through which African American art and dance and music were projected into prominence. The Apollo Theater not only presented them in front of an elegant audience, but through the long running Wednesday Amateur Nights the theater launched legendary careers. Like the girl who forgot the words to her song and had to improvise—Ella Fitzgerald. Great vintage photos and footage make it a visual feast. Backstage, back of the house, including the preparation given about booing to Amateur Night participants, there’s a lot of vital history is preserved here in a lively entertaining fashion. #theapollo