The Apollo Theater has been the birthing point of some of the most influential black musicians who we know today.
Diana Ross, James Brown, Billie Holiday and Gladys Knight are just a very small fraction of the big names who have performed there. Nestled in the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan, The Apollo Theater opened its doors in 1914 and continues to serve as more than just a venue for talented individuals to express themselves. It is a historical landmark that serves as a safe space for musicians, neighborhood residents and people from all over the world to come to and enjoy.
A documentary about the famous venue entitled The Apollo is set to be released by HBO soon. Directed by Roger Ross Williams, the film gives more than a peek in to its history and cultural impact. A premiere for the film was held during the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival at the Apollo Theater on April 24th. The red carpet was graced by stars like actress Angela Bassett (Black Panther), and musician Smokey Robinson who also have cameo’s in the film alongside rapper Doug E. Fresh, the late Aretha Franklin and many more.
Getty Images for Tribeca Film Festival. From left to right: Director Roger Ross Williams, Chief Executive Office of the Apollo Theater Jonelle Procope, Smokey Robinson and Tribeca Film Festival CEO and Co-Founder Jane Rosenthal.
While the film focuses on the team behind the theater and notable figures that have contributed their time, money and effort to the success of the venue, the premise of it is based around the book Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. Between the World and Me was written by the author as a letter to his son explaining the social and economic struggles that are inherently embed in to the fate of black man living in America. An adaption of the book was presented as a theatrical performance that appeared at the Apollo Theater in April 2018. Ta-Nehisi opens up the film with him and the cast doing a brief read through of the script based on his book.
As the film progressed, we saw more of the Apollo’s raw beginnings. Amateur Night only took place once a week but was the pinnacle of the theater’s success and contributed a great deal to its reputation now. It was a night that everyone, from the talent to the audience, looked forward to and dreaded at the same time because there was no telling what the crowd’s reaction would be. The crowd would excessively “boo” the talent on stage if they were to even miss a note in their song, trip over their feet during their routine or tell and unfunny joke. But if they actually had what it took, the loudest uproar of cheers that were probably heard all the way in Brooklyn would erupt from the audience. It seemed only the toughest could survive Amateur Night as it was clearly not for the weak hearted.
The official Amateur Night host Joe Gray, who recently retired just last year, described it as something that was necessary for artists to grow. He believed it built character and encouraged those who survived it to be fearless. It’s where artists like Lauryn Hill got her start (and her first “boos”) and the weekly competition is still going strong to this day.
The film continues to take us through a visual timeline of the historical theater. With a full house, and then some, every night, The Apollo was prospering and Amateur Night was just the start. Bigger and better acts were booked all day and night, and performers were doing as many as 6 shows in a day and more than 20 per week. Compensation was low and tickets were expensive, but that never deterred artists like James Brown from performing at a place that he and many others considered to be home. Motown artists would appear at the theater together as The Motown Revue, and a 12-year-old Stevie Wonder would blow the sweetest tune from his harmonica while The Supremes would serenade the crowd with their angelic voices.Artists recollected from of their favorite memories on stage and backstage where they would hang out, play cards and catch up. Gladys Knight compared the backstage area to going to school and seeing your friends. It was like a family reunion every night for everyone, not just musicians. Comedians like Chris Rock and Jamie Foxx also graced the stage at the Apollo throughout their careers.
The film transitions from these exciting times to more somber ones. The Apollo was at its peak during a time when racial tensions in NYC and America were extremely high, especially in areas with a lot of minorities. Black people were constantly subjected to racism, violence and social injustice and this became the beginning of the Harlem riots. Although it may have served as a safe haven for some, one woman in the film described the Apollo as “a sanctuary”, it quickly turned in to the opposite when an 18-year-old black kid was shot to death during a show. Followed by the deaths of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., the film emphasized the huge cultural shift that took place as a result of these racial issues. The chaos ensued and the historical venue suffered financially as bigger theaters that housed more than the Apollo’s 1,506 seats entered the industry.
The Apollo Theater filed for bankruptcy and officially closed its doors in 1981 until it was bought and refurbished by Manhattan president at the time Percy Sutton, who revealed in the film that he was dishing out nearly $2 million dollars a year just to sustain it. From then on, the theater experienced several financial run-ins that were indefinitely solved once the state of New York decided to fund it.
The film circles back to the performance of “Between the World and Me” which features special performances by rappers Common and Black Thought and Angela Bassett.
As if the Apollo’s historical impact doesn’t encompass its undeniable significance to black history, black culture and music in general, a notable line from the film that truly resonated with me and sums up the film was “Harlem is the Apollo, and the Apollo is Harlem”.
