Savage : The Story

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Set in the 1920s, Savage tells the inspiring and heartbreaking true story of Wanda Savage, a Chickasaw sharpshooter, silent film actress, and single mother navigating two conflicting worlds. Born into the Chickasaw Nation to a Chickasaw mother and a white father, Wanda struggles with her identity, caught between two worlds in a society that refuses to fully accept her as either Native or white. As Vaudeville exploits her heritage and Hollywood erases it, Wanda fights for acceptance and love in a world determined to silence her voice. Her personal battles deepen when her young son is taken from her and sent to an Indian boarding school, tearing her between the roles of a mother and a woman seeking her own place in the world.

Driven by her indomitable spirit, Wanda defies societal constraints, fighting to reclaim her voice and identity while forging a path for herself in a world intent on erasing her. Featuring a powerful pop-infused jazz, blues, and Native-inspired score, Savage is both a deeply personal and universal story of survival, resilience, and the unyielding human desire for belonging and self-acceptance.

The real Wanda Savage was a tribal member of the Chickasaw Nation, as is her great granddaughter, cowriter, composer, and lyricist, Nicolette Blount. Savage presents a modern view of Native Americans against a historical backdrop and highlights a culture and people who are underrepresented. The writers hope to bring awareness to this language that only has 40 fluent speaking elders left (all over the age of 60) by including elements of their tribe’s beautiful, but endangered language in some of the script and music, while honoring its significance to the Chickasaw people.

The music for Savage is a fresh take on scoring a musical with pop influenced jazz and blues that harkens back to the days of the old standards. Savage marries the old sounds of jazz with new, catchy pop music giving it a contemporary feel with some elements of Native American sounds. 

“I have watched and read more new shows than I can count. Very few have legs, but this is going to be a hit!” Michelle Elkin, choreographer and actress

“A haunting, yet buoyant jazzy score of loss and redemption. Like the trail of tears, it’s truth still echoes today. The smart and savvy lyrics transcends time. Broadway bound!” Jo-Ann Dean, Broadway Producer and owner of Broadway Signs

“Savage brings about a new sound to musical theatre and represents a culture who are not currently represented. Savage could rival any current Broadway production!” - Kevin Lynch, music director, composer, writer

“Wanda Savage fascinates people! A strong willed woman who unapologetically broke the norms of traditional gender stereotypes. There is undeniably mass appeal for this story. This is the time for Wanda’s story to be on stage!” - Rachel Klein, director and choreographer

What musical is Savage similar too? 

As a Broadway Producer recently said, “Savage is nothing like anything I have seen to date. It is uniquely and powerfully it‘s own.” 

Savage - The Unconquerable Wanda Savage

Book: Nicolette Blount and Lindel Hart

Music and lyrics: Nicolette Blount