The Little Engine That Could...

Bela Musana: Be the Light!

This blog has been many years in the making. Perhaps a lifetime of work, dedication and drive of a small group of friends (and artists) who have been a part of the creation of WITNESS UGANDA by way of Be the Change (Uganda). This blog will update you on the work of BTC and its students along with the progress of WITNESS UGANDA.

WITNESS UGANDA is a music theatre experience that details the journey of the grass roots non-profit organization Be the Change (Uganda), which sponsors the education, housing, and basic needs of 10 students living in Kampala, Uganda. 

In the summer of 2005, Griffin Matthews traveled to Uganda to volunteer at a village orphanage. During his six-week journey, he stumbled upon a group of orphaned teenagers living in squalor and decided to help find sponsors for their educations. He returned to the US and with the help of his friends started Be the Change (Uganda). But the last 5 years have tested Griffin and his team's resolve and power to change the students' destinies. 

Suffering devastating losses and set backs, the organization nearly crumbles under the weight, but continues to hang on by a thread of hope. Using personal journal entries, letters, and interviews, Witness Uganda explores the complexities of balancing the tangled lives of both the staff and students. A carefully crafted combination of music, dance and journalistic theater propels the play and explores the question: is changing the world even possible?

Written, Created and Conceived by Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews

ONE NIGHT ONLY

"When I started, it wasn't all for me. It was supposed to be something that I was supposed to share with people...about the simplicity of helping..."

The piece was created as a One Night Only Benefit in NYC to be performed at a small theater in midtown Manhattan. We scheduled one show, but within a few days of ticket sales we quickly realized that we were going to need to add a second show.

The night of the benefit was magical. Two sold out shows! Two brilliant performances by the cast! And as the last note rang out, the crowd stood to their feet!

Several people approached us and asked if we had plans to perform it again. We didn't. But after a few weeks, the cast re-assembled at Chelsea Studios for a private Industry Invitation Only reading of the piece. 


After that showing, we were invited to perform at Rattlestick Theater's F-ing Good Plays Festival on January 9th. 

That same week, we were honored to learn that WITNESS UGANDA had been chosen as one of three pieces to perform at the 2010 Disney/ASCAP Workshop in Los Angeles, hosted by the legendary Stephen Schwartz! Um...we were screaming...and crying! 

This piece has inevitably become The Little Engine that Could! From a One Night benefit in NYC to the Disney Lot in LA! Unbelievable!


We are now in sunny LA, preparing to present our Little Engine on February 17th at 7pm on the Disney Lot in Burbank, CA. This cast features the talents of some of the most incredible actors we have ever met! We are honored and thrilled that audiences are responding to the message of the piece: Bela Musana (Be the Light!).


Please continue to follow the journey of WITNESS UGANDA on this blog, because ultimately the story belongs to YOU...

Art Work by Taylor Dunham
www.bethechangeuganda.com 

Photos from the 1st Benefit! by Jen-I Talkington