Aishah Rahman
Encyclopedia
Aishah Rahman, born Virgina Hughes (born 1936, New York City
) is an African American
playwright
.
Rahman grew up as a foster child in Harlem
. She received a B. S. in political science from Howard University
in 1968. Lady Day: A Musical Tragedy (1972) was a play about Billie Holiday
. Unfinished Women Cry in No Man's Land While a Bird Dies in a Gilded Cage, juxtaposing the decisions of five unwed mothers with the death of Charlie Parker
, premiered in 1977. She wrote a blues musical A Tale of Madame Zora (1986), based on Zora Neale Hurston
's life. In collaboration with Akua Dixon Turre she wrote the libretto for Anybody Seen Marie Laveau?, an opera about the New Orleans voodoo
practitioner Marie Laveau
.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
) is an African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
.
Rahman grew up as a foster child in Harlem
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
. She received a B. S. in political science from Howard University
Howard University
Howard University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...
in 1968. Lady Day: A Musical Tragedy (1972) was a play about Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing...
. Unfinished Women Cry in No Man's Land While a Bird Dies in a Gilded Cage, juxtaposing the decisions of five unwed mothers with the death of Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
, premiered in 1977. She wrote a blues musical A Tale of Madame Zora (1986), based on Zora Neale Hurston
Zora Neale Hurston
Zora Neale Hurston was an American folklorist, anthropologist, and author during the time of the Harlem Renaissance...
's life. In collaboration with Akua Dixon Turre she wrote the libretto for Anybody Seen Marie Laveau?, an opera about the New Orleans voodoo
Louisiana Voodoo
Louisiana Voodoo, also known as New Orleans Voodoo, describes a set of underground religious practices which originated from the traditions of the African diaspora. It is a cultural form of the Afro-American religions which developed within the French, Spanish, and Creole speaking African American...
practitioner Marie Laveau
Marie Laveau
Marie Laveau was a Louisiana Creole practitioner of Voodoo renown in New Orleans. She was born free in New Orleans....
.