Global Rhythms: Omar Sosa & Seckou Keita SUBA Trio at Town Hall

Written By Kimberly Colburn

Attended: Thursday, Jan 16, 2025

Awesome performers Omar Sosa, Seckou Keita, and Gustavo Ovalles -having a great time (and I FINALLY remembered to take photos at the event!!

Town Hall’s blurb: 

“The Atlantic Ocean separates Cuba and Senegal, the respective birthplaces of piano virtuoso Omar Sosa and kora master Seckou Keita, a distance diminished by their shared ancestral connection to Africa.

Recorded during lockdown and released in October 2021, Sosa and Keita’s second album SUBA is a hymn to hope, to a new dawn of compassion and real change in a post-pandemic world, a visceral reiteration of humanity’s perennial prayer for peace and unity. Joining Omar and Seckou in the studio and for live performances is the inimitable Venezuelan artist Gustavo Ovalles.”

Event Summary

My friend Kelly invites me to attend this Town Hall event, and I genuinely bought my ticket without reading anything about what we were seeing. It turned out to be this interesting trio from all parts of the world (Argentina, Cuba, and Senegal). The trio included drums, piano, and a whole bunch of other instruments I didn’t recognize (although Kelly lived in Africa for a decade and knew them). They vibe was lively and more than anything else, the performers looked like they were having the best time of their life. That’s always fun to see, joy is infectious and it kept the crowd lively. There were multiple moments of stand up and dance and clap. 

I will say that Town Hall is a very flat space, with very little lift to the seating. As a result, when anything happens closer to the stage floor, you can’t really see it very well. The seating is like church pews, although they are cushioned so they are far more comfortable than the church pews from my childhood.

I can also recommend Anana’s, the pizza place across the street from Town Hall, as a pre-show snack. 21+, has a hole in the wall feel. Good cocktails too. 



Transparency/Communication

Standard email confirmation, no reminder

Event Goals

I bought a ticket to see something with a friend, success for personal goal! And it was a good concert, event success. 

Reception

The audience was INTO IT - they were fairly egging the performers on for the first and second encores…they loved it, but by the fifth encore they were done. It was pretty funny to feel the audience collectively decide they were done with the show. 

Value

Tickets were offered at a sliding scale (minimum $25), making it pretty accessible for a great concert.  

Bottom line

It was a one-night only event, but do check out Town Hall as they have events of all kinds (lectures, concerts, panels, a smorgasborg) on nearly every night! 

Me and Kelly, just after the show ended


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Kimberly Colburn

Kimberly Colburn, CEO and Co-Founder

Kimberly is a skilled event manager, producer, administrator, and community builder.

She has managed digital, hybrid and in-person events for Soulpepper Theatre, the University of Toronto’s Robotics Institute, AGEWELL, the Canadian Robotics Council, South Coast Rep, LA Wine Fest, the Humana Festival, CanCOVID, and many more.

Trained as a theatre producer and story editor, she was the Literary Director of South Coast Rep, where she co-directed the Pacific Playwrights Festival and led the CrossRoads commissioning program. She has worked with companies including Los Angeles Opera, Denver Center Theatre Company, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Mixed Blood Theatre, Oregon Contemporary Theatre, Artists at Play, The Playwrights Center, the Eugene O’Neill Playwrights Conference, Musical Stage Company, and Native Voices at the Autry.

https://protagonist-events.com
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