Sister Rosetta
A new musical about the Godmother of Rock'n'Roll — gospel singer, guitar pioneer, and the woman rock and roll forgot to credit.
Before there was a King of Rock, there was a Queen.
Sister Rosetta Tharpe was raised in the Pentecostal church and steeped in the gospel tradition. She was performing by the age of four, billed as a singing and guitar-playing miracle. She took the name Tharpe from a short-lived marriage to a preacher and kept it for the rest of her life, through two further marriages and a career that never quite fit anywhere.
Blues singer. Gospel singer. Folk artist. Rock-and-roller. She produced music that crossed boundaries, defied classification, and disregarded the social and cultural norms of the age. She played electric two decades before Dylan did it at Newport, and she played it hard — lead lines and riffs where other players were strumming. She sang gospel in nightclubs and swing at Carnegie Hall, and she captivated white and Black audiences in both the North and the South, at a time when doing both was close to impossible.
Elvis, Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Johnny Cash all named her. Almost none of the credit came back to her in her lifetime.
All hail the Godmother of Rock'n'Roll.
A musical for stage, with global appeal. Currently in development. Media and sponsorship opportunity — enquiries to info@poorhouseproductions.com.au