Anne Wiggins Brown

A gifted African American young lady from Baltimore, while studying voice at Julliard in New York, is fortunate enough to earn a part in George Gershwin's operetta - "Porgy" - as it was in rehearsal. After he audition , George Gershwin renames the operetta "Porgy and Bess," in recognition of her talent. When the show opened Ms. Brown not only was given the lead role as Bess, when the show opened on Broadway she sang the immortal "Summertime" and changed the history of American music.