As a tribute to many of the African-American stars' rise to fame in the 1960 and 1970s, Vy Higginsen based her musical on the life of her sister Doris Troy.
Vy Higginsen and Ken Wydro, her husband, conceived the play in January 1979 and subsequently wrote the book and lyrics.
The couple persisted without a producer, and invested their life-savings to hire out the 632-seat Heckscher Theatre in East Harlem, which had previously been closed for 15 years.
Vy envisioned her audience as being "senior citizens, church groups, school children, and hard-working black mothers and fathers who had spiritual values and loved soul-stirring music."
Audiences flocked to see the musical, which "presented the passion, spontaneity and emotional uplift of the black church experience along with a universal message for anyone with a dream."
He concluded by saying, "To attend either production of Mama with a typical audience made up largely of church groups, some of which have traveled hundreds of miles by chartered bus to be there, is to be indelibly reminded of the enduring power of that tradition.
"[5] Born to Sing, the finale to the trilogy reveals the behind–the-scenes activities of Doris Winter's international tour along with her 15-year-old daughter.
The film stars Ciara, Lynn Whitfield, Patti LaBelle, Billy Zane, Juanita Bynum, Hill Harper, and Vy and Ken's daughter, Ahmaya Knoelle.