Mystery Love

When I started doing research for my play LEAVING THE BLUES I realised that I would be creating a good bit of it from my own head.  Hunter's one biography is a bit sparse, especially when it comes to her love life in general and her long term relationship with Lottie Tyler. And I found only one picture!

I searched on the internet and in libraries but found very little.  And in some ways that was a gift because it meant I could be as creative as needed to make the dramatic action work.
      Lottie Tyler                      

                                                  I did find a website (see below*)that asked the
                     same question I had: Where was the info on 
                     Lottie Tyler?  
                     She was the niece of a very famous song
                     and dance man, Bert Williams, but there was so little it could have only been a deliberate effort to hide her and her life; perhaps by her family; perhaps by writers not ready to explore lesbian relationships.  The only way I found more info was in conversations with the late music journalist Chris Albertson, who'd been a friend of Alberta's at the end of her life

Joy Sudduth
Whatever the reasons for Tyler's invisibility it  increased a sense of urgency to tell a story in which she was not forgotten as so many lesbians have been through out history. It's also one of the reasons I write plays that take place in earlier years.  People of colour and lesbians didn't just pop up out of nowhere.  We've had long, courageous and creative histories in this country and I love to explore how that looked and felt. 

With this production by TOSOS at The Flea (performances start on January 16, 2020) the role of Lettie (based on Lottie) Alberta's lover is play by the amazing Joy Sudduth.  Joy was electrifying in our earlier production of "Waiting for Giovanni." I eagerly anticipate no less in LEAVING THE BLUES next week! Once characters are alive inside of us their memories never fade and the terrorism that made them invisible can't be repeated!


LEAVING THE BLUES performs at THE FLEA -January 16th-February 8th.
 Get tickets:     https://www.tososnyc.org/events/leaving-the-blues

*https://ubleproject.tumblr.com/post/31419751452/whither-lottie-tyler


Please enjoy our Leaving the Blues playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1b1qXMMW7QeFJOb5GsNlXD?si=wwofVsV4SwOdeZEqlEWQrw