# Sharon Bridgforth

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**Sharon Bridgforth** (born May 15, 1958, in [Chicago, Illinois](/source/Chicago,_Illinois)) is an [American writer](/source/American_literature) working in theater.[1]

## Early life

Bridgforth was born in [Cook County Hospital](/source/Cook_County_Hospital) in [Chicago, Illinois](/source/Chicago,_Illinois), and moved to [South Central Los Angeles](/source/South_Central_Los_Angeles) when she was 3 years old. She discovered the diversity of the city during her long bus commutes to school.[2]

## Career

From 1993 to 1998, Bridgforth worked as the founder, writer, and [artistic director](/source/Artistic_director) of the root wy'mn theatre company.[3] root wy'mn's touring roster included: the [Michigan Womyn's Music Festival](/source/Michigan_Womyn's_Music_Festival), [The Theater Offensive](/source/The_Theater_Offensive) in Boston, [La Peña Cultural Center](/source/La_Pe%C3%B1a_Cultural_Center) in [Berkeley, California](/source/Berkeley,_California), and the [Walker Art Center](/source/Walker_Art_Center) in Minneapolis.

From 2002 to 2009, she served as the anchor artist for the Austin Project, produced by Omi Osun Joni L. Jones and the John L. Warfield Center for [African](/source/African_studies) and [African American Studies](/source/African-American_studies), [University of Texas at Austin](/source/University_of_Texas_at_Austin)[.](/source/John_L._Warfield_Center_for_African_and_African_American_Studies,_University_of_Texas_at_Austin.) Her work, "Finding Voice Facilitation Method" was published in *Experiments in a Jazz Aesthetic Art, Activism, Academia, and the Austin Project* edited by Osun Joni L. Jones, Lisa L. Moore, and herself.[4]

In 2008, Bridgforth received a National Performance Network Creation Fund award, for *delta dandi*, co-commissioned by Women & Their Work, in partnership with the National Performance Network. Freedom Train Productions in New York presented a reading of the work in 2008.[5] A workshop production of the work was produced in 2009 at the [Long Center](/source/Long_Center_for_the_Performing_Arts) in Austin, Texas.[6]

At [Northwestern University](/source/Northwestern_University), as the [Andrew W. Mellon Foundation](/source/Andrew_W._Mellon_Foundation) [artist-in-residence](/source/Artist-in-residence) in the [performance studies](/source/Performance_studies) department, Bridgforth presented a workshop production of *delta dandi* during the 2009 Solo/Black/Woman performance series.[7] Since 2009, Bridgforth has been resident playwright at New Dramatists, New York. Her work *blood pudding*, was presented in the 2010 New York [Summerstage](/source/Summerstage) festival.[8]

She was the 2010–2012 Visiting Multicultural Faculty member at the Theatre School at [DePaul University](/source/DePaul_University) and is the curator of the Theatrical Jazz Institute at Links Hall, produced by the school, Links Hall and herself.[9]

In 2022, Bridgforth was featured in the book *50 Key Figures in Queer US Theatre*, with a profile written by theatre scholar T. Chester.[10]

### *the bull-jean stories*

Published by [RedBone Press](/source/RedBone_Press), *the bull-jean stories* give cultural documentation and social commentary on African-American herstory and survival. Set in the rural South of the 1920s through the 1940s, *the bull-jean stories*uses traditional storytelling and nontraditional verse to chronicle the course of love returning in the lifetimes of one woman-loving-woman named bull-dog-jean.[11]

### *Love Conjure/Blues*

Both a performance and a [novel](/source/Novel),*Love Conjure/Blues* places the fiction-form inside a traditional Black American voice, inviting dramatic interpretation and movement within a highly literary text: It is filled with [folktales](/source/Folklore), poetry, [haints](/source/Haint), prophecy, song, and [oral history](/source/Oral_history). *Love Conjure/Blues*was also published by RedBone Press.[12]

### *dat Black Mermaid Man Lady*

Exists as a show, oracle deck, performance/novel, performance, sung children's book, and artistic mentorship towards homeownership.[13] The performance celebrates the different embodiments of gender through the journey of three characters alongside Yoburba deities Oya, Osun, and Yemaya. The show premiered at the Pillsbury House + Theater in Minneapolis, MN, on May 30, 2018, and ran through June 17, 2018.[14] The performance was written by Sharon Bridgforth, directed by Ebony Noelle Golden, with dramaturgy by Alexis Pauline Gumbs, and vocal composition by Mankwe Ndosi.

In addition to a performance, "dat Black Mermaid Man Lady" is an oracle deck.[15] The deck consists of characters from the performance/novel and features artwork by Yasmin Hernandez. The oracle deck is a working deck that Bridgforth used for a series of weekly readings.

Partnering with Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association[16] and City of Lakes Community Land Trust,[17] Bridgforth worked with five to seven emerging artist of color to create new works and more toward homeownership.

## Awards, residences, and grants

In 1997, Bridgforth's script *no mo blues*was nominated for an Osborn Award (sponsored by the American Theatre Critic's Association).[18] *The bull-jean stories* won a [Lambda Literary Prize](/source/Lambda_Literary_Award) for "Best Book by a Small Press" in 1998. The collection also received a nomination for a [Lambda Literary Prize](/source/Lambda_Literary_Award) in the category of "Best Lesbian Fiction" [19] and a nomination from the 1998 [American Library Association](/source/American_Library_Association) for "Best Gay/Lesbian Book". Bridgforth was nominated for the 2002–2003 [Alpert Award](/source/Alpert_Awards_in_the_Arts) in the theatre category.[20] She has received the 2000 [Penumbra Theatre](/source/Penumbra_Theatre_Company) (St. Paul, MN) Playwriting Fellowship and 2001 [YWCA](/source/YWCA) Woman Of The Year in Arts Award in Austin, Texas.[21]

A recipient of the 2008 Alpert/Hedgebrook Residency Prize,[22] her work has been supported by the [National Endowment for the Arts](/source/National_Endowment_for_the_Arts) commissioning program; the National Endowment for the Arts/[Theatre Communications Group](/source/Theatre_Communications_Group), playwright-in-residence program; National Performance Network commissioning and community fund; the Paul Robeson Fund for Independent Media; and the [Rockefeller Foundation](/source/Rockefeller_Foundation) Multi-Arts Production Fund Award.[2] Bridgforth was also the recipient of the [Creative Capital](/source/Creative_Capital) Performing Arts Award in 2016.[23]

## Personal life

She has a daughter, Sonja Perryman, from a past marriage.[24] A [lesbian](/source/Lesbian),[25] her partner is Omi Osun Joni L. Jones.[citation needed] Jones also has a daughter, Leigh Gaymon-Jones, from a past marriage.[citation needed]

## Works

### Selected publications

- "The love conjure/blues Text Installation" script, anthologized in *Blacktino Queer Performance,* Northwestern University Press (2016), ISBN 978-0-8223-7465-7, ISBN
- "delta dandi", anthologized in *solo black woman performance,* Northwestern University Press (2013), ISBN 978-0-8101-2947-4, ISBN
- Excerpt from "con flama", anthologized in *Windy City Queer: LGBTQ Dispatches from the Third Coast,* University of Wisconsin Press (2011), ISBN 978-0-299-28404-6
- Writing exercises are featured in *Wingbeats: Exercises and Practice in Poetry,* edited by Scott Wiggerman and David Meischen. Dos Gatos Press, ISBN 978-0-9760051-9-3
- *Experiments in a Jazz Aesthetic: Art, Activism, Academia, and the Austin Project,* (ed. with Lisa L. Moore and Omi Osun Joni L. Jones), University of Texas Press (2010), ISBN 978-0-292-72287-3
- "Litany-Blood In The Soil/Texas", anthologized in *A Students' Treasury of Texas Poetry,* Texas A&M University Consortium Press (2007), ISBN 978-0-87565-353-2
- "a wo'mn called sir", anthologized in *First Person Queer: Who We Are (So Far),* Arsenal Pulp Press (2007), ISBN 978-1-55152-227-2
- excerpt "dyke/warrior-Prayers", anthologized in *Voices Rising: Celebrating 20 Years Of Black Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual And Transgender Writing,* Other Countries and RedBone Press (2006), ISBN 978-0-9786251-3-9
- "Street/Angels & Clarity", anthologized in *Check The Rhyme: An Anthology Of Female Poets & Emcees,* Lit Noire Publishing (2006), ISBN 978-0-9719052-3-8
- "interlude #21: the road to Higher Power", anthologized in *Spirited: Affirming the Soul and Black Gay Lesbian Identity,* RedBone Press (2006), ISBN 978-0965665933
- "Doña Julia", anthologized in *Red Light Superheroes, Saints, and Sluts,* Arsenal Pulp Press (2005), ISBN 978-1-55152-184-8
- Love Conjure/Blues, Redbone Press (2004), ISBN 978-0-9656659-6-4
- excerpt from "con flama", anthologized in *New Monologues For Women By Women,* Heinemann (2004), ISBN 978-0-325-00626-0
- excerpt from "con flama" anthologized in "Is This Forever, Or What?: Poems & Paintings From Texas", Greenwillow Books (2004), ISBN 0-06-051178-8
- "bull-jean slipn in" & "bull-jean & trouble", anthologized in *Role Call: A Generational Anthology Of Social And Political Black Literature & Art,* Third World Press (2001), ISBN 978-0-88378-239-2
- "dyke/warrior-Prayers" and "blood pudding", anthology in Recreations: Religion And Spirituality In The Lives Of Queer People, Q Press (1999), ISBN 978-1-895564-06-8
- *the bull-jean stories,* Redbone Press (1998), ISBN 978-0-86381-279-8
- Excerpt from *sonnata blue,* anthologized in *Ma-Ka Diasporic Juks,* Sister Vision Press (1998), ISBN 978-1-896705-14-9
- "that beat" anthologized in *Does Your Mama Know?: An Anthology of Black Lesbian Coming Out Stories,* RedBone Press (1997), ISBN 978-0-9656659-0-2

### Albums

- *amniotic/flow,* with daughter, with Sonja Perryman (2003) [available digitally](http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/sbsp)
- *the bull-jean stories,* [available digitally](http://www.redbonepress.com/products/the-bull-jean-stories-audiobook)

### Theater pieces

- *delta dandi*
- *The love conjure/blues* text [installation](/source/Installation_art)
- *con flama*
- *blood pudding*
- *dyke/warrior-Prayers*
- *no mo blues*
- *lovve/rituals & rage*

## References

1. ["Sharon Bridgforth"](https://web.archive.org/web/20121205220153/http://womenarts.org/network/profile_606.html). Womenarts.org. 2009-06-01. Archived from [the original](http://www.womenarts.org/network/profile_606.html) on 2012-12-05. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["Sharon Bridgforth Flame - Fall 2006"](http://www.torchpoetry.org/Torch%20Fall%2006/Flame/sharonbridgforth%20fall06.htm). *Torch*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20101223121257/http://www.torchpoetry.org/Torch%20Fall%2006/Flame/sharonbridgforth%20fall06.htm) December 23, 2010 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

1. ["Artist and Activist Sharon Bridgforth"](https://web.archive.org/web/20081209011411/http://www.afterellen.com/people/2008/6/sharonbridgforth?page=0%2C1). AfterEllen.com. 2008-06-10. Archived from [the original](http://www.afterellen.com/people/2008/6/sharonbridgforth?page=0,1) on 2008-12-09. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["The Austin Project"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120425021214/http://e-tap.org/history.htm). E-tap.org. Archived from [the original](http://e-tap.org/history.htm) on 2012-04-25. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["freedom train productions"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120402221952/http://freedomtrainproductions.org/html/sbridgforth.html). freedom train productions. Archived from [the original](http://freedomtrainproductions.org/html/sbridgforth.html) on 2012-04-02. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. Michael (2008-11-27). ["Austin Live Theatre: Upcoming: delta dandi, Rollins Theatre, January 9–10"](https://austinlivetheatre.blogspot.com/2008/11/upcoming-delta-dandi-rollins-theatre.html). Austinlivetheatre.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["Visiting Artist Sharon Bridgforth to perform Delta Dandy"](https://web.archive.org/web/20100611033130/http://www.communication.northwestern.edu/departments/performancestudies/news/newsletter/Fall_09.pdf). *The Newsletter of the Department of Performance Studies at Northwestern University*. **4** (1). Fall 2009. Archived from [the original](http://www.communication.northwestern.edu/departments/performancestudies/news/newsletter/Fall_09.pdf) on 2010-06-11. Retrieved 18 January 2013.

1. Sierra, Gabrielle (July 19, 2010). ["City Parks Summerstage Season Continues with BLOOD PUDDING, Kicks off 7/23"](https://www.broadwayworld.com/off-broadway/article/City-Parks-Summerstage-Season-Continues-With-BLOOD-PUDDING-Kicks-Off-723-20100719). *Broadway World*. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

1. Theatrical Jazz Institute. ["Sharon Bridgforth Theatrical Jazz Institute"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120329071412/http://www.chicagoartistsresource.org/dance/node/35925). Chicago Artists Resource. Archived from [the original](http://www.chicagoartistsresource.org/dance/node/35925) on 2012-03-29. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. Chester, T. (2022). "Sharon Bridgforth". *50 Key Figures in Queer US Theatre*. Noriega and Schildcrout (ed.). Routledge. pp. 30–34. ISBN 978-1032067964.

1. ["the bull-jean stories"](http://www.redbonepress.com/products/the-bull-jean-stories). RedBone Press. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["love conjure/blues"](http://www.redbonepress.com/products/love-conjure-blues-by-sharon-bridgforth). RedBone Press. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["About"](https://web.archive.org/web/20160502121452/https://www.datblackmermaidmanlady.com/about/). Archived from [the original](https://www.datblackmermaidmanlady.com/about/) on 2016-05-02. Retrieved 2018-03-24.

1. ["Announcing our 2018 Season! | Pillsbury House Theatre"](http://pillsburyhouseandtheatre.org/announcing-2018-season/). 5 January 2018.

1. ["dBMML Playlist"](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9STvPmV9jrMkBwxgobN6aO7LxGejLO9K). *YouTube*. December 7, 2020. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

1. ["Homepage"](https://www.ppna.org/). *Powderhorn Neighborhood*. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

1. ["The CLCLT welcomes You"](http://www.clclt.org/). *City of Lakes Community Land Trust*. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

1. ["Sharon Bridgforth and Luz Guerra"](http://academics.hamilton.edu/organizations/kirkland/bridgforth.html). Academics.hamilton.edu. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["11th Annual Lambda Literary Awards"](http://www.lambdaliterary.org/winners-finalists/07/15/lambda-literary-awards-1998/). Lambda Literary. 15 July 1999. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["June 2005 Interviews"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120328110402/http://www.womenarts.org/news_archives/June2005Interviews.htm). Womenarts.org. Archived from [the original](http://www.womenarts.org/news_archives/June2005Interviews.htm) on 2012-03-28. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["Past Winners - Greater Austin"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120510102226/http://www.ywca.org/site/pp.asp?c=9oIILUOtGlF&b=1840123). Ywca.org. Archived from [the original](http://www.ywca.org/site/pp.asp?c=9oIILUOtGlF&b=1840123) on 2012-05-10. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["2008 Alpert Award in the Arts"](https://archive.today/20120718035453/http://alpertawards.org/archive/winner08/collaborations.html). Alpertawards.org. Archived from [the original](http://alpertawards.org/archive/winner08/collaborations.html) on 2012-07-18. Retrieved 2012-11-24.

1. ["Artist Projects"](http://creative-capital.org/artistprojects). *Creative Capital*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20161231044000/http://creative-capital.org/artistprojects) December 31, 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved August 30, 2021.

1. ["Bridgforth"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120425021217/http://www.cherylcoward.com/content/index.php?s=bridgforth). *CherylCoward.com*. Archived from [the original](http://www.cherylcoward.com/content/index.php?s=bridgforth) on 25 April 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2013.

1. "Black lesbian author receives award". *[Windy City Times](/source/Windy_City_Times)*, March 26, 2008.

## External links

- [Sharon Bridgforth's Official Website](https://web.archive.org/web/20111015101928/http://sharonbridgforth.com/content/)
- [Blip TV-Sharon Bridgforth](https://web.archive.org/web/20131024085205/http://blip.tv/sharon-bridgforth)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Sharon Bridgforth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharon_Bridgforth) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharon_Bridgforth?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.