''Mamba's Daughters'' () is a

1929 This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholic ...

novel written by DuBose Heyward and published by the University of South Carolina Press. It was later adapted by Heward and his wife Dorothy Heyward for the stage; the play premiered on Broadway in 1939.

Novel

The book is set in the early 20th century, following three different families in scenes of deception and social transformation. The book also explores racial boundaries during that period of the 20th century. It received positive reviews, with the ''Georgia Historical Quarterly'' commenting that it provided "a unique perspective not only of Charleston's racial tensions, but also of the unique subculture shared by

Charleston Charleston most commonly refers to: * Charleston, South Carolina * Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital * Charleston (dance) Charleston may also refer to: Places Australia * Charleston, South Australia Canada * Charleston, Newfoundlan ...

's elite whites and poorer blacks". ''Mamba's Daughters'' was translated into French (1932) and Dutch (1939).

Stage adaptation

The novel was adapted for the stage by Heyward and his wife Dorothy Heyward, with songs by Jerome Kern; it premiered on Broadway at the Empire Theatre on January 3, 1939, starring Ethel Waters, for whom the Heywards wrote the adaptation, and directed by

Guthrie McClintic Guthrie McClintic (August 6, 1893 – October 29, 1961) was an American theatre director, film director, and producer based in New York. Life and career McClintic was born in Seattle, attended Washington University and New York's American Academ ...

. It initially ran for 162 performances, closing on May 20, 1939, and then returned the following year, to the Broadway Theatre, running for 17 performances, from March 23, 1940, to April 6, 1940. Notably, Waters became the first African American, male or female, to star in a television show, ''

The Ethel Waters Show ''The Ethel Waters Show'' was a one-hour American television variety special that ran in the earliest days of NBC, on June 14, 1939, and was hosted by actress and singer Ethel Waters. Waters was the first black performer, male or female, to have he ...

'', which was broadcast on NBC on June 14, 1939, and included a dramatic sequence from the play, along with two actresses from the stage production,

Georgette Harvey Georgette Harvey (December 31, 1884 – February 17, 1952) was an American singer and actress. She is perhaps most famous for creating the role of Maria in the original Broadway production of '' Porgy'' (1927) and the 1935 Broadway producti ...

and Fredi Washington. Perry Watkins, designing the scenery, was the first African-American to design a Broadway show. He then, in 1942, worked in scenic designing on the Herbert B. Ehrmann play '' Under this Roof''.

Original cast

* Ethel Waters – Hagar *

Anne Brown Anne Brown (August 9, 1912March 13, 2009) was an American soprano for whom George Gershwin rewrote the part of "Bess" into a leading role in the original production of his opera ''Porgy and Bess'' in 1935. She was also a radio and concert singe ...

– Gardenia *

Willie Bryant William Stevens Bryant (August 30, 1908 – February 9, 1964) was an American jazz bandleader, vocalist, and disc jockey, known as the "Mayor of Harlem". Biography Born in Chicago, Illinois, United States, while growing up he took trumpet l ...

– Gilley Bluton *

Georgia Burke Georgia Burke (February 27, 1878 — November 28, 1985) was an American actress who had performed on television, radio, and Broadway theatre between the 1930s and the 1960s. In 1934 Burke made her debut in Broadway in ''They Shall Not Die'', and ...

– Eva *

Helen Dowdy Helen Dowdy was a Broadway theatre, Broadway actress and singer who played the role of Queenie in the 1946 revival of Jerome Kern, Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II, Hammerstein's ''Show Boat'' (a role originally played by Tess Gardella in 1927). She ...

– Willie May * José Ferrer – St. Julien DeC. Wentworth *

– Mamba (Hagar's mother) *

Alberta Hunter Alberta Hunter (April 1, 1895 – October 17, 1984) was an American jazz and blues singer and songwriter from the early 1920s to the late 1950s. After twenty years of working as a nurse, Hunter resumed her singing career in 1977. Early life Hu ...

– Dolly * J. Rosamond Johnson – The Reverend Quintus Whaley *

Canada Lee Canada Lee (born Leonard Lionel Cornelius Canegata; March 3, 1907 – May 9, 1952) was an American professional boxer and then an actor who pioneered roles for African Americans. After careers as a jockey, boxer and musician, he became an actor ...

– Drayton *

Harry Mestayer Harry Mestayer (1876–1958) was an actor in silent films and theatrical productions in the U.S. He had leading roles and was a supporting actor in more than two dozen films and numerous theaterical productions. He performed in California, was ...

– The Judge * Fredi Washington – Lissa * Jimmy Wright – Tony

References

External links

Productions at the Internet Broadway database
1929 American novels Novels set in South Carolina {{1920s-novel-stub