Playwright Beaufield Berry (she/her) had a spark for the idea to write the play and musical, Buffalo Women, when she read historical accounts of Black women in the West. After authoring the book and lyrics, over the course of two years Berry worked with J. Isaiah Smith to write music and additional lyrics to bring the play to life.

Berry was homeschooled as a child, and grew up reading books, penning stories, and performing onstage. She has always had a love for writing, and has built a successful career writing for the stage, directing and producing. According to Berry,

“I had already been writing before I got into theatre,” she said. “The writing part felt so natural—it felt like breathing. I cannot not write.”

Although the pandemic stalled production, Berry generated buzz with her Black family comedy, In the Upper Room. This play was read at the 2017 Great Plains Theatre Conference (now Great Plains Theatre Commons) in Omaha, and was a finalist at the 2018 Eugene O’Neill Theater’s National Playwrights Conference. The world premiere of In the Upper Room took place earlier this year at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. Berry also began a workshop production of Buffalo Women in Omaha at the Bluebarn Theatre, before bringing the production to Des Moines.

We are honored to co-produce Buffalo Women alongside Beaufield Berry and hope you enjoy the show.

Read the full article from American Theatre here