Georgia native and noted playwright Shay Youngblood died from ovarian cancer on June 11 at age 64.
Born in Columbus, GA, Youngblood burst onto the literary scene with her debut collection of short stories, “Big Momma Stories,” in 1989 followed by two acclaimed novels, “Soul Kiss” and “Black Girl in Paris,” and a children’s book, “A Family Prayer.”
But many will remember her for the award-winning plays she penned which were produced around the world.
In a Juneteenth message sent to patrons of Horizon Theatre – where Youngblood was a frequent presence – the company’s co-artistic director Lisa Adler penned this remembrance of the playwright:
“Shay Youngblood was light and love, adventure and courage, free spirit, writer and artist extraordinaire, Daughter of her Big Mamas and nurturing teacher to so many aspiring writers. I am honored to have known and loved Shay since we were both young adults carving our paths through the world.
At Horizon Theatre in Atlanta, I produced the world premiere of her first play, “Shaking’ the Mess Outta Misery,” in 1988, developed from her collection of Big Mama Stories, after Shay’s quiet persistence in coming to see our shows and nudging me to read her play. I remember reading the hand-typed-on-onion-skin-paper script (before computers of course) while riding in the car. The stories were powerful, funny and full of heart, and her voice was strong and clear. “Shakin’” had an amazing birth, guided by director Glenda Dickerson and dramaturgs Gayle Austin and Isabelle Bagshaw, and starring local theatre legends Marguerite Hannah (as Daughter), Carol Mitchell-Leon, Georgia Allen, Elisabeth Omilami, and Margo Moorer (among others), and it was an immediate hit. Horizon produced it twice in the late 1980s, brought it to the Piedmont Park Arts Festival, and then it was produced by theatres all over the world.
Horizon did another revival directed by Tom Jones in 2010, and it won the Suzi Award for Outstanding Production of a Play. But back in that first production of “Shaking,'” Shay was having the daunting experience of moving from novelist/short story writer to playwright. I thought she might never step foot in a theatre again, but instead she caught the theatre bug and decided to get her MFA in Playwriting from Brown to learn the craft. Horizon subsequently produced her lovely, sweet “Talkin’ Bones,” and then her career took her down many paths and places.
When she found herself back in Atlanta years later, we invited her to be part of our Black Women Speak commission project in 2021, led by long-time colleague, Horizon Associate Artistic Producer Marguerite Hannah, and she was working on a new play about women and self care, “Boss Ladies and Tender-Hearted Girls.” I had always loved her play “Square Blues,” written and set in the 1990s about three generations of activists, but it was ahead of its time. When she brought me a revised script in 2021, we knew it was time to produce “Square Blues.” The professional world premiere of the play was at Horizon in July 2022, directed by Tom Jones.
Shay bravely carved an artistic life that took her all over the world, and her talents flowed into plays, novels, visual arts and teaching. She won friends and chosen family everywhere she traveled and was supported throughout her life first by the strong community of women who raised her (her Big Mamas that inspired her stories) and then by the strong community of friends who were always there for her. Shay was a unique and extraordinary person who was a gift to the world; may her spirit live on in her artistic works and in the many lives she touched and changed. We will miss you dearly, Shay.”
Find out more about Youngblood in this 2023 interview at Charis Books & More on the occasion of the publication of “A Family Prayer.”
