The Reigning Belle of the Bluegrass Region
Chicago actress and playwright portrays Olivia Buckner, a Kentucky woman who defied social convention and risked death threats to to marry Yutaka Minakuchi, a Japanese seminary student, in 1903.
The Reigning Belle of the Bluegrass Region
Chicago actress and playwright portrays Olivia Buckner, a Kentucky woman who defied social convention and risked death threats to to marry Yutaka Minakuchi, a Japanese seminary student, in 1903.
Press and Praise for the Show
REIGNING BELLE IN THE LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER
Actress honors grandmother who ‘defied social convention’ with Central Kentucky performances.
REIGNING BELLE ON 88.9 WEKU
A 120-year-old KY love scandal is broughtto the stage.
REIGNING BELLE ON WKYT CBS LEXINGTON
An actress and playwright from Bourbon County brought her family’s century-old love scandal to the stage.
“Reigning Belle is terrific. It deals with so many issues that are apropos now. I was captivated throughout and moved by the story.”
“Ultimately, it is about the barriers people create to deny their common humanity and the possible triumph of transcendent love. This play strikes home because Rose and Olivia Buckner remind us not only of our ancestors’ shortcomings but of our own in what we witness on the news each day. It zings.”
“Rose Buckner’s recent performance of The Reigning Belle of the Bluegrass Region was nothing short of magical. ”