Overview
Character Name
Ma Rainey
Gender
Female
Playing Age
Mature Adult
Role Size
Lead
Voice
Spoken
Time & Place
A Chicago recording studio during the sweltering summer of 1927, at the height of the Blues era
Analysis
Based on the real life Gertrude “Ma” Rainey, a popular blues singer from the 1920s. “Her manner is simple and direct, and she carries herself in a royal fashion” (Wilson’s description). She is portrayed as a very particular, rather difficult artist, who has to have things
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