I was recently talking with a friend about the 1980’s movie Red Dawn . It would seem to be as far away from a hip hop story as you can imagine.
Red Dawn is set in the mountains of Colorado, which makes it rural. Hip Hop is urban. The heroes are all white. Hip Hop is not all white. And it’s the first film to be released with a PG-13 rating. Hip Hop is decidedly NOT PG-13.
The story, however, is classic. A group of oppressed underdogs have their lives and freedoms taken away from them. They respond by resisting by any means necessary. They fight to protect home and family. It is only because of who they are that makes the story not hip hop.
I began thinking what a hip hop version be like? This is what I came up with…
Adapting Red Dawn into a Hip Hop Play: My Vision
The time is the near future,on the eve of a presidential election. The current president, who won the previous election by a quirk of the system, realizing that he will lose the upcoming election, declares that the polls are fake – the result of voter fraud.
He proposes an executive order to suspend the election until measures can be taken to eliminate the fraud. He also reinstates poll taxes and literacy tests, which the Supreme Court by a 5-4 vote upholds.
Widespread unrest leads to a declaration of martial law, supported by some elements of the military AND some help from “advisors” sent by “our Russian friends and their great president.”
Civil war ensues.
The heart of the resistance is here in New York City. The heroes are a group of young hip hop artists, MCs, DJs, writers and dancers, and we watch as they successfully resist. They fight to save their homes and family, and their nation, and they win.
Is This a Good Play?
I love the story, but unfortunately, because it’s told visually rather than through dialogue, it won’t make a good play. Not as it is. The story needs to be adapted, the plot needs to be structured, and the characters need to look and sound like all of you. A lot of work needs to be done first.
Because it’s not a play Rhymes Over Beats won’t be doing it. We’re already busy working on some great stories.
BUT because we think it’s a story that should be told, we release it to any one who wants to tell it. Why not give it a shot – and submit it to us as a play?
Give it your “best shot” and send it to us. We’ll respond – after all, it was my idea. 🙂