Vy Higginsen Collection, 1982-2012
A Guide to her papers at the Indiana University Archives of African
American Music and Culture
Finding aid prepared by Allison Bohm
Summary Information
Repository
Indiana University, Archives of African American Music and Culture
(AAAMC)
Smith Research Center, Rooms 180-181
2805 E. 10th St.
Bloomington, IN 47408-2601
Phone: 812-855-8547
Fax: 812-856-0333
Email: aaamc@indiana.edu
http://www.indiana.edu/~aaamc
Creator
Higginsen, Vy
TitleVy Higginsen Collection, 1982-2012
Collection No.
SC
28
Extent
2 document cases + 2 cassettes + 2 CDs + 1 VHS + 2 LPs + photographs +
posters + books
Language
Materials are in English.
Abstract
The collection consists primarily of
materials related to the gospel musicals
Mama, I Want to
Sing
;
Mama, I Want to Sing II; and
Born to Sing! Mama 3. It includes scripts,
programs, promotional materials, posters, photographs, videos, and sound recordings.
Records of the Mama Foundation include programs, press clippings, publicity, and
posters.
Access Restrictions
This collection is open for research. Audiovisual materials may require the creation
of listening and/or viewing copies. Advance notice of your visit is highly
recommended to ensure that requested materials will be ready for use upon your
arrival. Contact the AAAMC staff for more details.
Biographical Note
Vy Higginsen is an award-winning author, playwright, and radio and television
personality. She worked in broadcasting for a decade and turned to writing in 1983,
when she co-wrote, produced and directed the off-broadway gospel musical
Mama, I Want To Sing!, a play
that ran for 8 years in New York and toured nationally and internationally.
Higginsen has continued her involvement in the theatre, continuing to write and
produce new plays.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged into 5 series:
- Series 1: Mama, I Want to Sing
- Series 2: Mama, I Want to Sing, Part 2
- Series 3: Mama, I Want to Sing: The Whole Story
- Series 4: Born to Sing! Mama 3
- Series 5: Mama Foundation Programs & Productions
Scope and Content Note
The collection consists primarily of materials related to the gospel musicals
Mama, I Want to Sing;
Mama, I Want
to Sing II
; and
Born to Sing! Mama
3
. It includes scripts, programs, promotional materials, posters,
photographs, videos, and sound recordings. Records of the Mama Foundation include
programs, press clippings, publicity and posters.
-
Indexing Terms
-
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in
IUCAT, the IU Libraries'
online catalog. Materials about related topics, persons, or places can be found by
searching the catalog using these terms.
-
-
Separated Material
Some materials such as books and posters have been separated from the collection and
stored in different locations.
Administrative Information
Acquisition Information
Donated by Vy Higginsen in 1994, 1998, and 2012.
Usage Restrictions
All requests for copying and publishing materials must be submitted in writing to
the Archives of African American Music and Culture. Some publication requests
may also require the written permission of the interviewer, interviewees, and/or
performers.
Preferred Citation
Vy Higginsen Collection, SC 28, Archives of African American Music and Culture,
Indiana University, Bloomington.
Processing InformationProcessed by AAAMC Staff.
Completed in 2012
Collection Inventory
Series:
Series 1: Mama, I Want to Sing, 1982-2004, undated
Box 1
Folder 1
Complete Script, [1982?]
Box 1
Folder 2-5
Press kit, 1984-1994
Includes 2 photos (PA001370, PA001371) and various clippings from
1984-1994.
Box 1
Folder 6
Program, Special Guest Deniece Williams (Japan), 1996
Physical Description
1 photoreproduction + 1
program.
Box 1
Folder 7
Program, Special Guest Deniece Williams (Japan), 1996
Physical Description
1 photoreproduction.
Box 1
Folder 8
Program, 10th Anniversary Celebration (Japan), 1994
Physical Description
1 photoreproduction + 1 program.
Box 1
Folder 9
Program, starring Chaka Khan (West End, London), February 1, 1995
Physical Description
1 photoreproduction + 1 program + 2 flyers.
Box 1
Folder 10
Souvenir Program, Mama, I Want to Sing Part II (Japan), [1991?]
Box 1
Folder 11
Program, Mitsubishi Super Selection (Japan), undated
Box 1
Folder 12
Handbills, 10th Anniversay Celebration, Paramount at Madison
Square Gardens, February 1-6,
1994
Box 1
Folder 13
Promotional Buttons, undated
Physical Description
2 buttons.
Mama, I Want to Sing, 1992
Shelf No.
PZ7 .H53497
Physical Description
1 paperback + 2 hardcover copies.
Hardcover copy 2 is autographed by Higginsen.
Promotional Video, undated
Shelf No.
VC 542
Physical Description
15 min.
Box POS Box 2
Folder POS 118
Poster, Mama, I Want to Sing: A Black Gospel Musical at the
Heckscher Theater, undated
2 copies. 1 framed copy hanging in
office.
Original Soundtrack, undated
Shelf No.
CD 1718
Physical Description
3 copies.
Mama, I Want To Sing, 1986
Shelf No.
12D 714
Physical Description
1 sound disc : analog, 33 1/3 rpm ; 12 in.
Mama, I Want To Sing, undated
Shelf No.
12D 715
Physical Description
12 in. single.
Mama, I Want to Sing - Soundtrack (Reach Records), 1986
Shelf No.
CASS 818
Physical Description
1 cassette.
Box 1
Folder 14
Program, Hecksher Theatre (United States), [1986-1988?]
Box 1
Folder 15
Front and Back Cover - Soundtrack, 1986
Box 1
Folder 16
Program, Lima Civic and Convention Center (United States),
January 1987
Box 1
Folder 17
Program, Memorial Hall (Dayton, Ohio), February 1987
Box 1
Folder 18
Program, Orpheum Theater (Omaha, Nebraska), [1987?]
Box 1
Folder 19
Souvenir Programs (United States), 1987
Box 1
Folder 20
Program, Merriam Theatre (United States), November 1993
Box 1
Folder 21
Newsletter, "Mama's 10th Year of Kickin' It", January 1994
Box 1
Folder 22
Souvenir Program (Wien, Austria), [1994?]
Box 1
Folder 23
Mama, I Want to Sing - Book, 1995
Published lyrics from the musical in book form.
Box 1
Folder 24
Program, Special Guest Deniece Williams (United States),
January 1995
Physical Description
1 program + 1
flyer.
Box 1
Folder 25
Program, Christmas Special, 1995
Box 1
Folder 26
Program, The Ruth Seaton James Centre for the Performing Arts
(United States), June
2002
Box 1
Folder 27
Flyer, 20th Anniversary (Japan), 2003
Box 1
Folder 28
Flyer, 20th Anniversary Celebration (Harlem, USA), 2004
Box 1
Folder 29
Flyer, Mama I Want to Sing Gospel Concert (Japan), undated
Box 1
Folder 30
Flyer, New York's Award Winning Black Musical Hit! 7 Triumphant
Years, [1990?]
Box 1
Folder 31
Photograph, undated
Box 1
Folder 32
Program, History of
Mama, I Want to Sing, undated
Series:
Series 2: Mama, I Want to Sing, Part 2, 1989-1995, undated
Box 1
Folder 33-34
Complete Script, 1989
2 copies.
Box 2
Folder 1
Press Kit, 1990-1991
Physical Description
6 photographs + synopsis +
profiles of Higgenson, D. Hicks, Norwood, D. Troy, K. Murphy, C.
Stewart, W. Naylor + various clippings from
1990-91.
Box 2
Folder 2
Program, Paramount Madison Square Garden, Winter 1995
Physical Description
1 photoreproduction.
Box 2
Folder 3
Flyers, Mama, I Want to Sing, Part II, undated
Box 2
Folder 4
Photo, Mama, I Want to Sing, Part II, undated
Part Two of Mama I Want to Sing, 1990
Shelf No.
CD 1828
Physical Description
3 copies.
Part Two of Mama I Want to Sing, the story continues… (Reach
Records), undated
Shelf No.
CASS 819
Box 2
Folder 5
Program, Heckscher Theatre (United States), [1990?]
Physical Description
2 programs + 1
flyer.
Box 2
Folder 6
Flyer, Paramount (United States), March 7-12, 1995
Box 2
Folder 7
Program, Paramount (United States), undated
Box 2
Folder 8
Photo of Norwood in a scene from Mama, I Want to Sing, Part II,
undated
Series:
Series 3: Mama, I Want to Sing: The Whole Story (Combines part 1 and
2), 1992-1996,
undated
Box 2
Folder 9
Script from Japan Tour, 1992
Box 2
Folder 10
Mama, I Want to Sing: The Whole Story, Black Musical Theater
Series III Program (Japan), [1992-1993?]
Box 2
Folder 11
Mama, I Want to Sing: The Whole Story, Black Musical Theater
Series III Program (Japan), [1992-1993?]
Physical Description
Partial
photocopy.
Mama, I Want to Sing: The Whole Story, Black Musical Theater
Series III Flyer, undated
Physical Location
Framed print hangs inside by door of Main
Suite 181.
Box 2
Folder 12
Program, Paramount (United States), 1996
Box 2
Folder 13
Photo, undated
Box 2
Folder 14
Program, Union Square Theatre (United States), undated
Physical Description
4 handbills + 1 flyer + 2
programs.
Series:
Series 4: Born to Sing!: Mama 3, 1988-1997
Box 2
Folder 15
Script, 1996
Box 2
Folder 16
Miscellaneous Flyer, March
18-23, 1997
This is My Song!: A Collection of Gospel
Music for the Family,
1995
Shelf No.
M2193 .T44 1995
Box 2
Folder 17
Let the Music Play Gospel, Miscellaneous programs and flyers,
1988-1989
Series:
Series 5: Mama Foundation Programs & Productions, 1994-2012
Box 2
Folder 18
Gospel in the Night, 1994
Box 2
Folder 19
Unique New York Theater Guide, 1999-2000
Box 2
Folder 20
Gospel Is…!, 1999-2004
Box 2
Folder 21
Press Clippings, 1999-2010
Box 2
Folder 22
Let Me Off In Harlem flyers, approximately 2000
Box 2
Folder 23
Mama Foundation brochures, approximately 2000-2010
Box 2
Folder 24
Gospel For Teens, 2006-2011
Box 2
Folder 25
Flyer, Joyful, Joyful: A Gospel Celebration, 2005
Box 2
Folder 26
This is My Song, [2000s?]
Physical Description
2 flyers.
Box 2
Folder 27
Kwanza Spirit brochure, 2006-2009
Box 2
Folder 28
Program, Married - A Comedy, with Complications, 2007
Box 2
Folder 29
Gospel at the Brownstone, 2007
Box 2
Folder 30
Sing, Harlem, Sing!, 2007-2009
Box 2
Folder 31
Music Afterschool for Kids, 2009
Box 2
Folder 32
Mama, I Want to Sing - The Next Generation, 2011-2012
Box POS Box 2
Folder POS 156
A Gospel Day in Harlem, May 5,
2007
Physical Description
1 poster.
