Tina Turner Dead At 83

By Curtis King The Black Academy of Arts and Letters

Wow! What a surprise to hear about the passing of another world music legend, TINA TURNER! She, of course, was a pioneer, a southern girl, a genteel lady and a musical stylist . . . all in a league of her own. Over two decades ago, as a part of our Summer Youth Arts Institute Enrichment program, a partnership with DallasISD, I wanted students to experience finale productions based on the music and life of individual African American artists of note. I opted to do this kind of work with the intention of introducing the music and the artists to a new generation of young students and performers who, for the most part, had never heard of iconic artists like Tina Turner.

For our 39th season, we did the production, “TINA: THE MUSICAL” which opened and ran for three performances on June 24 and 25, 2016 to three sold out/ standing-room only shows. Over 5,000 patrons stood in long lines to see the student performance. We did the show a little over three years before it officially opened at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on Broadway, November 7, 2019. The students enjoyed learning about Ms. Turner, her struggles from her humble beginnings and her rise to international fame as a legendary musical giant.