Box 74

Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series: Subseries 1.2, Betsey Brown, 1983-1995, undated, includes copies of the published novel, multiple drafts, and scripts for the musical adaptation, including sheet music and notes. Betsey Brown, originally published as a novel in 1985 by St. Martin’s Press, presents the story of a young Black girl’s grappling with adolescence amidst racial integration of public schools in 1959 St. Louis, Missouri. The novel is drawn from...

Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series: Subseries 1.2, Betsey Brown, 1983-1995, undated, includes copies of the published novel, multiple drafts, and scripts for the musical adaptation, including sheet music and notes. Betsey Brown, originally published as a novel in 1985 by St. Martin’s Press, presents the story of a young Black girl’s grappling with adolescence amidst racial integration of public schools in 1959 St. Louis, Missouri. The novel is drawn from...

Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series:

Subseries 1.3,daddy says, 1999-2003, undated, includes manuscripts, galley proofs, and editors’ notes. daddy says, published in 2003 by Simon and Schuster, Inc. is a young adult/children’s novel set in Texas that follows the struggles of two daughters of a rodeo family as they mourn the death of their mother amidst the pressures of adolescent life.

Scope and Contents From the Series: Series 5, Teaching Documents, 1997-2004, undated, includes materials from Shange’s work as a professor and instructor at institutions including Prairie View A&M University; Brown University; University of Florida; Dartmouth College; and DePaul University. Materials include syllabi written by Shange and others; professional biographies and curriculum vitae; teaching-related correspondence; administrative materials, such as departmental handbooks, faculty directories, memos, and meeting...

Scope and Contents From the Series: Series 10, Collected Written Works, Music, and Visual Art, 1913-2018, undated, includes selections from Shange’s personal library from her home in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn (collected by Barnard archivists and Professor Kim Hall in 2014); as well as other texts, recorded music, and visual artwork collected by Shange. Many of the books and magazines from Shange’s library speak directly to her interests and influences and are annotated; published works by Shange are also included here,...

Scope and Contents

Various typewritten pages from possible adaptation of Uncle Tom's Cabin; handwritten draft of MESL (Male English as a Second Language) from The Love Space Demands: a Continuing Saga; untitled handwritten poem draft

Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series: Subseries 1.25, Other and multiple works, 1996-2018, undated, includes materials related to other works by Shange (for which there were not enough items to constitute a subseries). This subseries also contains groupings of materials in which multiple works were originally arranged together (for example, photocopies of multiple excerpts or poems grouped and edited for performance or anthologies). Types of materials include photocopies of published works (some with notes), typewritten and...

Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series: Subseries 1.25, Other and multiple works, 1996-2018, undated, includes materials related to other works by Shange (for which there were not enough items to constitute a subseries). This subseries also contains groupings of materials in which multiple works were originally arranged together (for example, photocopies of multiple excerpts or poems grouped and edited for performance or anthologies). Types of materials include photocopies of published works (some with notes), typewritten and...

Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series:

Subseries 1.16, Nomathemba, 1994-1996, undated, includes drafts, production notes, and edits of the musical written by Shange, Eric Simonson and Ladysmith Black Mambazo's leader, Joseph Shabalala. First performed in 1996, Nomathemba is a love story set in post-apartheid South Africa.

Scope and Contents From the Series: Series 3, Journals, Agendas, and Notes, 1972-2018, undated, includes notebooks, journals, agendas, notepads, lists, scratch paper, photocopies, and other notes related to Shange’s personal, professional, and creative life. The materials in this series contain personal diary entries and musings, some of which make mention of family and friends; journal entries about dreams; notes and materials related to personal health and recovery from substance abuse and strokes; notes, research materials,...

Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series:

Subseries 1.21, The Lizard Series, 1996-2018, undated, includes typewritten and handwritten manuscripts of The Lizard Series 1-4, a series of poems.

Scope and Contents

Typewritten manuscripts of The Love Space Demands: a Continuing Saga, some pages appear to be galley proofs with typesetting edits, copyedits, and other edits; manuscript of the Love Space Demands for Talvin Wilks directed production at the Crossroads Theatre Company, 1991

Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series: Subseries 2.2, Personal, 1972-2018, undated, contains personal correspondence between Shange and friends and family, including letters, greeting cards, event invitations, and photographs. Some correspondence with family members and friends relating to creative collaboration and other business has been placed in Subseries 2.1, Business (and Shange frequently collaborated with friends and family in her professional and creative life). Correspondents include Shange’s parents, siblings,...

Scope and Contents

Notes from Editor for Nomathemba, edits, fax about Barnard Bulletin interview 1996, fax with Shange's CV

Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series: Subseries 2.1, Business, 1984-2018, undated, contains professional correspondence between Shange and editors, agents, producers, as well as publicity materials, travel documents and itineraries, invitations, fundraising asks, membership materials, performance notes, recommendation letters, requests for Shange’s critique or blurbs for other works, royalty statements and payments, and contracts received or sent by Shange. Much of the correspondence relates to works by Shange and in some cases...