What Is The Color Purple?

The Color Purple is a Broadway musical with music and lyrics by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray, and a book by Marsha Norman. It is based on Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning 1982 novel of the same name — one of the most celebrated works of American literature — and its 1985 Steven Spielberg film adaptation.

The musical follows the journey of Celie, an African American woman living in the rural American South in the early to mid-20th century. Beginning in poverty, abuse, and isolation, Celie’s story is one of extraordinary resilience — of a woman who finds her voice, her independence, and ultimately her joy, through the love of her sister Nettie and the transformative bond she forms with the magnetic singer Shug Avery.

The show was produced by Scott Sanders, Quincy Jones, and Oprah Winfrey — whose personal connection to the material ran deep, having played Sofia in Spielberg’s original film — and opened on Broadway at the Broadway Theatre on December 1, 2005.

The Road to Broadway

The musical’s journey began in 1999, when producer Scott Sanders optioned the rights to Alice Walker’s novel. After auditioning various creative team members over several years, the project found its creative home at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, where it was workshopped in mid-2004.

The world premiere of The Color Purple took place on September 9, 2004, at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, produced by special arrangement with Creative Battery and Scott Sanders Productions. LaChanze starred as Celie, with Felicia P. Fields as Sofia, Saycon Sengbloh as Nettie, Adriane Lenox as Shug, and Kingsley Leggs as Mister. The production was directed by Gary Griffin with scenic design by John Lee Beatty, lighting by Brian MacDevitt, costumes by Paul Tazewell, and sound by Jon Weston.

Following the success of the Atlanta run, the musical transferred to Broadway, opening on December 1, 2005, at the Broadway Theatre on 53rd Street. It was directed by Gary Griffin, choreographed by Donald Byrd, with musical direction by Linda Twine.

The Plot — Celie’s Journey

Act One — Hardship and Awakening

On a Sunday morning in 1909, fourteen-year-old Celie — who has already suffered profound abuse at the hands of her father Alphonso — plays a clapping game with her younger sister Nettie. Celie is pregnant, and when she gives birth during a church service, her father takes the child away. Celie quietly asks God for a sign.

Four years later, local farmer and widower Albert “Mister” Johnson approaches Alphonso for permission to marry one of his daughters. Alphonso offers him Celie rather than Nettie, throwing a cow into the bargain. Though the sisters promise never to be separated, Celie goes with Mister to protect Nettie’s future. When Nettie later arrives at Mister’s property, fleeing Alphonso’s attentions, Mister attacks her. She fights back — and is expelled. Mister swears Celie will never see her sister again, and begins intercepting Nettie’s letters.

Years pass. Mister’s son Harpo marries the strong-willed Sofia. The juke joint era comes to the community with the arrival of jazz singer Shug Avery — Mister’s longtime lover — who arrives in terrible health. Despite local disapproval, Celie nurses Shug back to health. A profound bond begins to form between the two women. Shug discovers Nettie’s hidden letters, and Celie realises her sister is alive in Africa.

Act Two — Liberation and Reunion

Reading the intercepted letters, Celie learns that Nettie has been living with the missionary family that adopted her children. Sofia, meanwhile, is arrested for assaulting the mayor after refusing to work for his wife, and is sentenced to serve in the mayor’s household. In 1932, Shug brings her lover Grady for Easter. Celie, empowered at last, tells Mister she is leaving. When he tries to beat her, she stands firm and curses him. Squeak announces she is leaving too. Harpo and Sofia reconcile.

In Memphis, at Shug’s home, Celie discovers a natural gift for making and selling trousers — Miss Celie’s Pants — and inherits her childhood home. When Shug tells Celie she has fallen for a young musician, Celie does not crumble. For the first time, she feels a deep, settled love for herself. On a Fourth of July picnic, she hears a familiar voice and a familiar clapping song. It is Nettie, returned at last. Their reunion — made possible, improbably, by Mister’s change of heart — brings the story to its transcendent conclusion.

Songs — The Complete Song List

The score by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray blends gospel, blues, jazz, ragtime, and R&B into a richly layered musical landscape that traces Celie’s emotional journey from submission to self-realisation. Below is the complete song list from the show.

The Cast — Original Broadway, Revival & Film

Original Broadway Production — 2005

2015 Broadway Revival

2023 Film Adaptation

From Atlanta to the World — Every Major Production

Cynthia Erivo — A Star-Making Performance

No discussion of The Color Purple musical is complete without giving proper weight to Cynthia Erivo‘s transformative performance as Celie in the 2015 Broadway revival. Born in London, Erivo had first played Celie at the Menier Chocolate Factory in 2013 — and it was largely her performance that convinced producers the production was worthy of Broadway.

The revival opened to extraordinary reviews, with critics from The New York Times, Variety, The Guardian, and Entertainment Weekly all singling out Erivo as the undeniable heart of the production. Ben Brantley of The New York Times described her as “incandescent,” praising her ability to trace Celie’s evolution with subtlety and internal power. Variety called her “haunting.” The Guardian observed that she could accomplish tremendous things while appearing to do very little.

Her performance of “I’m Here” — Celie’s second-act declaration of self-worth — became the defining theatrical moment of the 2015–16 Broadway season. Entertainment Weekly cited it as a career-defining number, calling it a “star-making moment.” Erivo won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical, as well as the Drama Desk Award, the Outer Critics Circle Award, and the Theatre World Award.

Original Production vs 2015 Revival — A Tale of Two Productions

The two Broadway productions of The Color Purple tell a fascinating story about how a musical can be transformed by creative vision — and by the right performer in the right role at the right moment.

The 2005 Production — Grand Scale, Mixed Reception

The original 2005 Broadway production was conceived on a large scale, with a full chorus, elaborate staging, and a running time that some critics found overlong. Ben Brantley of The New York Times described it at the time as “a big, gaudy, lumbering creature that felt oversold and overdressed.” Critics generally praised the performances — LaChanze’s Tony-winning turn as Celie was universally admired — but questioned the adaptation’s fidelity to Alice Walker’s novel, particularly its handling of the relationship between Celie and Shug. Despite mixed reviews, the production ran for 910 performances and grossed over $103 million.

The 2015 Revival — Stripped Back, Electrifying

Director John Doyle’s approach for the Menier Chocolate Factory production — later transferred to Broadway — was the opposite of the original. Scaled down, stripped to its emotional essentials, and centred entirely on Cynthia Erivo’s Celie, the revival was received as a revelation. Brantley, who had reviewed the original with reservations, described the revival as “a slim, fleet-footed beauty, simply attired and beguilingly modest,” full of “a deep wealth of power within its restraint.” The revival ran for 449 performances and won two Tony Awards: Best Revival of a Musical and Best Actress for Erivo.

The Color Purple on Screen — 1985 & 2023

Awards & Nominations

Original Broadway Production — 2006 Tony Awards

2015 Broadway Revival — 2016 Tony Awards

FAQ — Your Questions Answered

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