Director Jade King Carroll | 'Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom' Discussion

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom by August Wilson | Sep. 24 to Oct 20, 2013 dir: Jade King Carroll, sets: Anita Stewart, costumes: Loren Shaw, lighting: Gregg Carville, sound: Karin Graybash

Blues diva Ma Rainey and her band have come to a Chicago studio to cut a record, but their artistic differences nearly stop the session before it starts. Full of unforgettable characters and the raw power of the blues, this 1920s installment of Wilson's groundbreaking cycle of plays confronts the issues of race, fame, and generational divides through the rhythms of the African-American South.

Estimated Run Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes including a 15 minute intermission