The Death of Bessie Smith
Encyclopedia
The Death of Bessie Smith is a one-act play by American playwright
Edward Albee
, written in 1959 and premiered in West Berlin
the following year. The play is based around a series of conversations. Conversations between Bernie and his friend Jack, between Jack and an off-stage Bessie, and between black and white staff of a 'Whites-only' hospital in Memphis, Tennessee on the day the famous blues
singer, Bessie Smith
died in a car wreck.
It premiered Off-Broadway
at the York Playhouse on March 1, 1961, in a double bill with Albee's The American Dream. Directed by Lawrence Arrick, the "Nurse" was played by Rae Allen
and Ben Piazza played "The Young Man".
The play opened on Broadway
in repertory with other Albee plays, at the Billy Rose Theatre on October 2, 1968, for 12 performances. Directed by Michael Kahn
, Rosemary Murphy
played The Nurse and Ben Piazza played The Intern.
As part of an Albee Festival, the Goodman Theatre
, Chicago, presented The Death of Bessie Smith in 2003.
As widely believed, Bessie Smith did die following a car crash, but she was never refused admittance to a white hospital, which is the premise of Albee's play. She was taken directly to the Afro-American Hospital in Clarksdale, Mississippi
, where she died some seven hours later. The myth of racial discrimination had its origin in an article by jazz writer/producer John Hammond
, that appeared in the November 1937 issue of Down Beat
.
The character of Bessie Smith is only referred to in Albee's play and does not appear on stage. In early performances Albee did not even wish music or pictures of her to be used.
The play takes place in 1937 in Memphis, Tennessee, in a segregated
hospital and the surrounding grounds.
The Players
Source: Script
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...
Edward Albee
Edward Albee
Edward Franklin Albee III is an American playwright who is best known for The Zoo Story , The Sandbox , Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? , and a rewrite of the screenplay for the unsuccessful musical version of Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's . His works are considered well-crafted, often...
, written in 1959 and premiered in West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
the following year. The play is based around a series of conversations. Conversations between Bernie and his friend Jack, between Jack and an off-stage Bessie, and between black and white staff of a 'Whites-only' hospital in Memphis, Tennessee on the day the famous blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
singer, Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith was an American blues singer.Sometimes referred to as The Empress of the Blues, Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s...
died in a car wreck.
Production history
The play premiered in West Berlin at the Schlosspark Theatre, Berlin, Germany on April 21, 1960.It premiered Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
at the York Playhouse on March 1, 1961, in a double bill with Albee's The American Dream. Directed by Lawrence Arrick, the "Nurse" was played by Rae Allen
Rae Allen
Rae Allen is an American stage, film and television actress.-Biography:Allen was born as Raffaella Julia Theresa Abruzzo in Brooklyn, New York, the daughter of Julia and Joseph Abruzzo...
and Ben Piazza played "The Young Man".
The play opened on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in repertory with other Albee plays, at the Billy Rose Theatre on October 2, 1968, for 12 performances. Directed by Michael Kahn
Michael Kahn
Michael Kahn is the name of:*Michael Kahn *Michael Kahn , Washington D.C. based Artistic Director of the Shakespeare Theatre Company...
, Rosemary Murphy
Rosemary Murphy
Rosemary Murphy is an American actress of stage, film, and television.Murphy was born in Munich, Germany, the daughter of American parents Mildred and Robert D. Murphy, a diplomat...
played The Nurse and Ben Piazza played The Intern.
As part of an Albee Festival, the Goodman Theatre
Goodman Theatre
The Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of Chicago theatre, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization...
, Chicago, presented The Death of Bessie Smith in 2003.
Plot overview
The incident that gives the play its title and around which the action centers is based upon a myth that was largely accepted as fact until convincing evidence to the contrary appeared in the original 1972 edition of Bessie, a biography of the singer.As widely believed, Bessie Smith did die following a car crash, but she was never refused admittance to a white hospital, which is the premise of Albee's play. She was taken directly to the Afro-American Hospital in Clarksdale, Mississippi
Clarksdale, Mississippi
Clarksdale is a city in Coahoma County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 20,645 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Coahoma County....
, where she died some seven hours later. The myth of racial discrimination had its origin in an article by jazz writer/producer John Hammond
John H. Hammond
John Henry Hammond II was an American record producer, musician and music critic from the 1930s to the early 1980s...
, that appeared in the November 1937 issue of Down Beat
Down Beat
Down Beat is an American magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond" to indicate its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chicago, Illinois...
.
The character of Bessie Smith is only referred to in Albee's play and does not appear on stage. In early performances Albee did not even wish music or pictures of her to be used.
The play takes place in 1937 in Memphis, Tennessee, in a segregated
Racial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
hospital and the surrounding grounds.
The Players
Source: Script
- Bernie: A Negro, about forty, thin.
- Jack: A dark-skinned Negro, forty-five, bulky with a deep voice and mustache.
- The Father: A thin, balding white man, about fifty-five.
- The Nurse: A southern white girl, full blown, dark or red haired, pretty,cute, with a wild laugh. Twenty six.
- The Orderly: A light skinned Negro, twenty-eight, clean-shaven, trim, prim.
- Second Nurse: A southern white girl, blond, not too pretty, about thirty.
- The Intern: A southern white man, blond, well put-together, with an amiable face, thirty.