From the Bottom to the Top

By Frank Etheridge

Talk about a glorious full-circle moment.

When the raucous, untamed spirit of Ma Rainey takes the same Springer stage where the “Mother of the Blues” first performed 125 years ago at age 14, she rightfully returns as a now-iconic genius finally given her due.

While Columbus native Gertrude Pridget (1886-1939) has long enjoyed critical acclaim, it wasn’t until America’s Cultural Reckoning of recent years, which allowed for new voices such as Black Lives Matter and queer perspectives to finally be heard, that the full-scope of her trailblazing career and its musical and socio-cultural influence has been widely embraced and understood. As such, Ma Rainey – a bi-sexual Black woman who managed her music business with a stern hand, known to hire and fire men at will – in 2023 was bestowed with the Grammy’s Lifetime Achievement Award (same class as Nirvana). This came on the heels of the late 2020 release of the much-praised film adaptation of August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.

Wilson, the late, great African-American playwright, earned a Tony Award for Best Play nomination in 1986 for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, part of his acclaimed Century Cycle of works together chronicling the African-American experience of the 20th century. The two-act play is set over a stretch of recording sessions in Chicago in 1927, where Ma takes a rare break from her relentless touring of the Deep South’s Theatre Owners Booking Association Circuit (often called the chitlin’ circuit) with her five-piece band, the Rabbit Foot Minstrels. Tensions run high as the musicians toil under Ma who toils under label executives to cut a few of what would eventually become a total of 92 recordings for Paramount. Its title taken from a Ma song inspired by a rump-shaking dance popular in the free-wheeling tent shows she played and considered the first popular dance done without a partner, Wilson’s work is legendary for its portrayal of one woman’s determined, often down-and-dirty, fight to what is rightfully hers in the face of an industry and society hell-bent on exploiting what is rightfully hers.

Packing all this powerful momentum headed into Black History Month, the always inclusive-minded Springer Opera House, the State Theatre of Georgia, welcomes Ma back for a 10-show run from Friday, January 24 to Sunday, February 2.

Springer Artistic Director Keith McCoy also directs the production. “The choice to feature Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom is a fitting tribute to the city that helped shape the blues legend,” says Springer Artistic Director Keith McCoy, who directs the production. “The play is a powerful portrayal of Rainey’s determination to control her music and narrative in an industry that sought to exploit her talent.

“Presenting this work in Rainey’s hometown,” McCoy continues in a statement, “the Springer brings attention to the historical and cultural significance of Rainey’s life and music while also acknowledging the deep ties between the artist and the city that nurtured her.”

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Springer Opera House
January 24-February 2
7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 2:30 p.m. Sat. (1/25 only), 2:30 p.m. Sun.
School Group Show 10 a.m. Weds. Jan. 28; RSVP to education@springeroperahouse.org
Tickets $21-$52; purchase by phone (706) 327-3688, online at springeroperahouse.org, or in-person at box office 103 10th St.

CURTAIN CALL big discounts on last-minute ticket sales before showtime

Show may be inappropriate for ages 12 and under for mature themes, language, violence, alcohol use, and racial themes.