Joseph Bradford
Encyclopedia
White Bostonian Joseph Bradford was an American playwright who most famously helped write a landmark production, Out of Bondage, the first African American musical comedy, with Pauline Hopkins
and the Hyers Sisters
, debuting in 1876. The production featured Sam Lucas
, a famous minstrel performer of the era.
Pauline Hopkins
Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins was a prominent African-American novelist, journalist, playwright, historian, and editor. She is considered a pioneer in her use of the romantic novel to explore social and racial themes. Her work reflects the influence of W. E. B...
and the Hyers Sisters
Hyers Sisters
With Joseph Bradford and Pauline Hopkins, the Hyers Sisters produced the "first full-fledged musical plays... in which African Americans themselves comment on the plight of the slaves and the relief of Emancipation without the disguises of minstrel comedy", the first of which was Out of Bondage...
, debuting in 1876. The production featured Sam Lucas
Sam Lucas
Sam Lucas was an African American actor, comedian, singer, and songwriter. His career began in blackface minstrelsy, but he later became one of the first African Americans to branch into more serious drama, with roles in seminal works such as The Creole Show and A Trip to Coontown...
, a famous minstrel performer of the era.