George Brant's Marie and Rosetta to Make World Premiere at Atlantic Theater Company

Atlantic Theater Company has announced plans to present the world premiere of George Brant’s Marie and Rosetta as part of its 2016-17 season this coming fall. Atlantic artistic director Neil Pepe will helm the production.

A play with music, Marie and Rosetta tells the story of Sister Rosetta Tharpe, a musical influence on Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Ray Charles, and Jimi Hendrix. Tharpe was the queen of "race records" in the '30s and '40s but ended up buried in an unmarked grave in Philadelphia. Marie and Rosetta chronicles her first rehearsal with a young protégé, Marie Knight, as they prepare to embark on a tour that would establish them as one of the great duet teams in musical history.

Casting, creative team, and dates will be announced in the coming months.

George Brant’s plays include Grounded, Elephant’s Graveyard, The Mourners’ Bench, Grizzly Mama, and more. A Core Writer at the Playwrights’ Center, his work has been produced internationally by such companies as the Public Theater, Page 73, Cleveland Play House, Trinity Repertory Company, and others.