Perhaps you’re familiar with The Sweet Potato Queens series of books by Jill Conner Browne. They tell the story of a woman and her closest friends and how they learn to grab life by the horns.
Well, the books have now been turned into a musical that last week (March 17, 2016) made its world premiere in Houston at the Hobby Center’s Zilkha Hall.
Bringing the books to life took a collaboration between three accomplished musicians: Rupert Holmes, the man behind The Piña Colada Song, Sharon Vaughn, who wrote Willie Nelson’s hit My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys, and Melissa Manchester, Grammy-winning singer/songwriter whose hits include Don’t Cry Out Loud.
Houston Public Media’s St. John Flynn sat down with all three to talk about the production – and to find out exactly what is a sweet potato queen.
The Sweet Potato Queens runs through Sunday (March 27, 2016).
(Above: A performance of The Sweet Potato Queens Musical. Photo: Christian Brown via TUTS Underground)
MORE: The Sweet Potato Queens Musical — Extended Interview (Houston Public Media, March 21, 2016)