We are in a shabby Chicago recording studio (evocatively designed by Tim Case) on a wintry March afternoon in 1927. A white record producer (Tom Wethington) warily awaits the tardy arrival of Ma Rainey, a popular negro blues singer whose surly demeanor always leads to trouble. Not only does the producer dislike Ma's confrontational attitude, he doesn't like her sound. "Times are changing," he tells Ma's obsequious manager (Chad Morris). And indeed change... More >>>