Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Masterplots II: African American Literature Series)
At a glance:
- Author: August Wilson
- First Published: 1985
- Type of Work: Play
- Type of Plot: Psychological realism
- Time of Work: 1927
- Setting: Chicago’s South Side
- Principal Characters: Ma Rainey, Sturdyvant, Irvin, Cutler, Toledo, Slow Drag, Levee
- Genres: Social realism, Drama, Psychological drama
- Subjects: African Americans, Discrimination, Power, personal or social, 1920’s, Chicago, Singing or singers, Jazz music, Fame, Ambition, Success or failure
- Locales: Chicago, IL
The Play
This two-act play takes place in a recording studio and its adjoining band room. The action opens with a tense conversation between the producer, Sturdyvant, and Ma Rainey’s agent, Irvin, two white men anxious because of past experiences with the imperious and unpredictable Ma Rainey. She is late, and no one knows why.
Cutler, the leader of Ma’s accompaniment band, and two other members, Toledo and Slow Drag, arrive on time and go down to the band room. They are in their mid-fifties, know each other well, and have played for many years in the South. They too...
[The entire page is 2847 words long]
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