PHOTO | CHILDREN'S THEATRE OF CHARLOTTE

Ron Lee McGill and Rahsheem Shabazz star in “Grimmz,” which spins classic fairytales to the sound of hip-hop. The production runs Feb. 21-March 15 at Wells Fargo Playhouse.

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Once upon a time, a group of artists decided to create hip-hop content for kids.

Welcome to “Grimmz,” a Children’s Theatre of Charlotte production where Snow White doesn’t have seven dwarves; she has seven shawties. Director Christopher Parks and actors Ron Lee McGill and Rahsheem Shabazz spun classic fairytales to the sound of hip-hop. The trio began working on the concept in 2018. The one act production, which runs Feb. 21-March 15 at the Wells Fargo Playhouse, runs roughly 60 minutes.

“We knew we wanted to do something rap based, hip-hop based, and we were searching for content for quite a while,” Parks said. “Then it just came out to us: what are so many of the wonderful rap songs about but people involved in circumstances that are sometimes untenable and difficult, and what are the same circumstances that characters are dealing with in the ‘Grimms’ Fairytales?’ There are so many mirrors to the two genres/content that exists there.”

Their story follows the music sensations Jay and Will Grimmz, played by Shabazz and McGill respectively. They have nine Granny awards—yes, Granny, not Grammy—and one Great Granny award. Jay and Will return to Charlotte for a performance including fan favorites “Snow White and Seven Shawties,” “Down with Rapunzel,” “Hanzel & Gretel: Lost in the Hood” and “Break, Cinderella, Break!”

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“‘Grimms’ Fairytales’ relate to children’s lives even today,” Shabazz said. “Some of the things that these characters go through, such as Cinderella, who has to move into a new house with a new family, or Rapunzel who is locked in a tower and just wants to see the world and experience things, sometimes parents hold their children back from seeing those things, or don’t understand what a child is going through when they have to move into a new house with a new family, or if their parents are getting divorced…[these] are things these Grimm’s stories speak to. We are able to take that hip-hop element, and add it to that grim situation—we can create something so beautiful.”

Said McGill: “Hip-hop, the genre in and of itself evolved from grim situations…it was a turn and a change into a positive light, with taking what exists and turning it into something brand new. The Grimms’ tales and hip-hop really go hand-in-hand in a way that we really hope to convey in the show.”

The co-creators of “Grimmz” noted how many kids listen to rap, but it is not necessarily music designed for them. They took familiar characters but made it relevant for a modern audience.

“We wanted to do something that spoke to children,” said Shabazz, who is also the show’s choreographer. “Children a lot of times are listening to hip-hop music that is not made for them. We wanted to give children music that sounded like what they are already listening to, but with lyrics for them, so they won’t feel guilty about listening to these songs. It’s actually children’s music, and when people hear this music, they’re not like, ‘another kid kind of song.’ It’s something adults might even want to listen to.”

Said McGill: “We want to make this for everyone, not just for kids, but something that everybody—the family—can collectively come together and enjoy this.”

While the trio previously worked together on the Children’s Theatre production of “Last Stop to Market Street,” Shabazz and McGill and have known each other for years, collaborating on various projects. McGill explained the experience of a theatrical deep dive with one of your closest friends as a unique one.

“We’ve been friends since I was a bout 15-16 years old,” McGill said. “We’ve come up in theater together. We’ve collaborated for many years. To have this opportunity to undertake one of these types of shows with him was definitely a dream come true.”

On the Net:
www.ctcharlotte.org

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