Dominique Morisseau, Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, Camille A. Brown & Kamilah Forbes

History-making Black female creative team announced for Broadway-bound Soul Train

Soul Train is eyeing a 2021 Broadway premiere to mark the iconic television series' 50th Anniversary.

Tom Millward
Tom Millward

All aboard! The Broadway-bound musical Soul Train, inspired by the iconic television series created and hosted by Don Cornelius, has announced its core creative team and will make history as the first Broadway production to have all African-American female artists in its key roles.

The book for the musical is written by Tony Award nominee Dominique Morisseau (currently represented on the Great White Way by Ain't Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations) and Tony Award nominee Camille A. Brown, whose Broadway résumé includes Choir BoyOnce on This Island and 2012's A Streetcar Named Desire, will serve as choreographer. The musical will be directed by the Apollo Theater's Kamilah Forbes, who has previously worked as Assistant or Associate Director on the Broadway productions of Holler If Ya Hear MeA Raisin in the SunLucky GuyStick Fly, and The Mountain Top.

In celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the landmark television series, the team is eyeing a 2021 Broadway premiere.

Synopsis: "Through more than 20 classic hit songs from the era, Soul Train tells the personal story of Don Cornelius as he creates the iconic television series."

The lead producers for the tuner have also been announced, including four-time Grammy Award winner and author of Soul Train: The Music, Dance and Style of a Generation Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson (pictured above) and Don Cornelius's son Tony Cornelius, alongside Matthew Weaver, Jeffrey Tick, Richard Gay, Anthony E. Zuiker, Shawn Gee and Devin Keudell.

Originally created by Don Cornelius in 1971, "Soul Train" was a trailblazing showcase platform for talented R&B, pop, hip-hop, and soul artists. The series' popularity ensured a 35 year run and in 2006, it held the title of being the longest running first-run, nationally syndicated program in television history.

Dominique Morisseau commented: "I am so excited to help bring the narrative of one of our culture's most influential and legend-making endeavors to the stage. Having grown up on this series and being immersed in the culture around it, I never knew what it took to make it the iconic staple that it is. Through the socio-political challenges both internally and externally, Don Cornelius' uncompromised vision, and the revolutionary dance culture that the show made visible to the mainstream, there are a million handprints on what we know as "Soul Train." I cannot wait to partner with this legendary creative team of incredible women to celebrate the history and the unsung heroes of our nation's longest running televised music and dance series."

(Photo by Nicola Goode)

Originally published on

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