Here & Now interview: Vy Higginsen, theater legend who co-wrote 'Mama, I Want to Sing!'

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Vy Higginsen co-wrote the script for what would become one of the most influential Black gospel musicals of our time - 1983's "Mama, I Want to Sing!"

"Mama I Want to Sing!" was created as a tribute to Higginsen's sister, Doris Troy. Troy made her mark on African-American music as a soul and R&B singer-songwriter throughout the 1960s and '70s. Higginsen and Troy's father was a Pentecostal minister, and Troy began her musical journey singing in the choir at his church. Despite her parents' disapproval, Troy became an usherette at the Apollo Theater, where renowned singer and producer James Brown discovered her talent as a singer.

Troy went on to create hit songs such as "Just One Look," which reached No. 10 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in 1963, and "Whatcha Gonna Do About It," which peaked at No. 37 on the U.K. Singles Chart in 1964. Throughout her career, she also contributed back-up vocals for artists and bands like The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Solomon Burke, and more. Troy's talents and accomplishments earned her the title "Mama Soul."

"Mama, I Want to Sing!" premiered at the Heckscher Theatre on March 23, 1983, and ran for eight years with 2,800 performances in Harlem, and another 1,000 performances throughout the United States, Europe, Japan, and the Caribbean. In 1985, the musical was named one of the top 10 "Best of "84" theater performances by Time Magazine.

Higginsen sat down with Sandra Bookman in this installment of "Here & Now."