Myrna Colley-Lee? The Woman Behind the Stage Clothes

Many people know Myrna Colley-Lee because of her past marriage to actor Morgan Freeman. But that is only one part of her life. She has her own name, her own work, and her own place in the arts. Myrna Colley-Lee is a costume designer, set designer, art curator, and arts supporter. Her work has helped many stage stories feel real. She worked behind the scenes, but her work could be seen in every dress, coat, hat, and fabric choice on stage.

Costume design may sound simple at first. But it is not just about clothes. In theater, clothes tell a story. A dress can show if a person is rich or poor. A worn jacket can show pain. A bright scarf can show hope. A dark suit can show power. A simple apron can show hard work. Myrna Colley-Lee understood this. She used clothes to help actors become real people in the eyes of the crowd.

Who Is Myrna Colley-Lee?

Myrna Colley-Lee is an American artist who made her name in theater. She is best known for costume design. She has also worked as a set designer and art director. Her career shows how much power there is in behind-the-scenes work. The audience may look first at the actors. But the actors often need the right clothes, colors, and stage world to tell the story well.

Goodman Theatre lists many of her stage credits. These include The Ballad of Emmett Till, The Wedding Band, Becoming Adele, Gee’s Bend, The Piano Lesson, Forest City, Ain’t Misbehavin’, and Relativity. Goodman Theatre also says she co-founded the SonEdna Foundation, which supports literary arts in the Mississippi Delta.

Her Life Is More Than Morgan Freeman

Myrna Colley-Lee is often searched because of Morgan Freeman. That is normal. He is a famous actor. But her story should not stop there. She had a long career in the arts. She earned respect from theaters, museums, schools, and cultural groups. Her work was not based on fame. It was based on skill, care, and years of effort.

Her marriage to Morgan Freeman brought her more public attention. Still, she often stayed private. She did not turn her life into a show. She kept doing her own work. That makes her story more interesting. She shows that a person can be close to fame but still have a strong life outside of it.

Early Life and Education

Myrna Colley-Lee grew up with a love for art. Public records do not share every detail about her early life. But they do show that she studied and trained in design. Mississippi State University says she holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in scenic and costume design from Temple University.

That kind of study is important for theater work. A costume designer must understand fabric, color, body shape, time period, and story. A designer must also know how clothes move on stage. A coat may look good in a drawing, but it must also work under hot lights. It must let the actor move, sit, dance, cry, or fight. This is why costume design is both art and problem-solving.

How Clothes Tell a Stage Story

In real life, people often judge a person by clothes. Theater uses this same idea. A costume can tell the crowd who a person is before that person speaks. Myrna Colley-Lee’s work helped show this kind of detail.

A good costume can show:

A person’s age
A person’s job
A person’s money level
A person’s culture
A person’s pain
A person’s hope
A person’s past
A person’s place in history

For example, old shoes can show years of struggle. A clean white shirt can show pride. A faded dress can show hard times. A bright color can show joy or courage. These details help the audience understand the story faster. This is why Myrna Colley-Lee’s work mattered.

Her Work in Black Theater

Myrna Colley-Lee is strongly linked to Black theater. Arizona Theatre Company says she built her career during the rise of Black Theatre in the late 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. It also says she has designed costumes for more than 70 productions and two films at 50 different theaters and venues.

This matters because Black theater has told many stories that were ignored for a long time. These plays often showed family life, race, work, pain, faith, history, and hope. Costumes helped make those stories clear. The right dress, suit, work shirt, or hat could show a time period and a life experience. Myrna Colley-Lee helped protect those details.

Famous Theater Credits

Myrna Colley-Lee worked on many stage productions. Her credits show range and skill. She did not work on only one kind of story. Her designs appeared in plays about family, history, race, love, loss, and daily life.

Some of her known credits include:

The Piano Lesson
Gee’s Bend
Forest City
Wedding Band
The Ballad of Emmett Till
Radio Golf
Fences
Ain’t Misbehavin’
Relativity
Becoming Adele

PlayMakers Repertory Company lists many of these credits and describes her as a costume designer active since the late 1960s. It also links her work to the Black Theatre Movement.

Why Her Costume Work Feels Special

Myrna Colley-Lee’s costume work feels special because it is not only pretty. It has meaning. A beautiful dress is nice. But a true stage costume must do more. It must fit the world of the play. It must match the actor. It must help the audience believe the story.

A costume designer must ask many questions. Where does this person live? What year is it? Is this person tired? Is this person proud? Is this person hiding something? Does this person want to be noticed? Does this person want to disappear? These questions help shape the clothes.

That is why costumes can show age, class, pain, hope, and history. They are not just fabric. They are part of the story.

Her Costume Collection

One of the most useful parts of Myrna Colley-Lee’s legacy is her costume collection. Mississippi State University says the Myrna Colley-Lee Costume Collection includes vintage costumes and clothing, plus pieces dating from the 1920s to the present. The collection can help school and community theater programs.

This is a strong example of art helping new people. These clothes are not locked away for no reason. They can teach students and young designers. They can help small theater groups make better shows. They can also show how fabric, cuts, colors, and patterns changed over time.

The collection proves one simple thing. Clothes can keep history alive. Even an old jacket can teach a lesson. Even a dress from another decade can help a young actor understand a character.

Art, Museums, and Community Work

Myrna Colley-Lee also worked outside the stage world. She is known as an art collector and curator. She has supported museums, artists, and cultural programs. Her work often connects with African American art and history.

Goodman Theatre says the Mississippi Museum of Art presented an exhibit of her costume drawings called GladRags: Sketches, Swatches and Costume Designs by Myrna Colley-Lee. The same source also lists several awards she received from arts groups.

Mississippi State University also honored her with an honorary doctorate of creative arts in 2007. The university said she donated her papers in 2006 and supported many arts efforts in Mississippi.

Marriage to Morgan Freeman

Myrna Colley-Lee married Morgan Freeman on June 16, 1984. Their marriage lasted for many years. They lived a more private life than many Hollywood couples. Even though Freeman was a major film star, Myrna Colley-Lee continued to be known in the arts world for her own work.

ABC7 Chicago, using an Associated Press report, said their divorce decree was entered on September 15, 2010. The same report said they had separated in December 2007 after 26 years of marriage. It also described Myrna Colley-Lee as a theater and film costume designer.

Their marriage is part of her public story. But it is not the whole story. She should not be remembered only as someone’s former wife. She had a long creative life before, during, and after that marriage.

Public Attention and Private Life

Fame can make a private person easy to misunderstand. When someone is connected to a famous actor, the public often wants gossip. But Myrna Colley-Lee’s life is better understood through her work. Her designs, art support, and cultural service say more about her than rumors ever could.

She has kept much of her personal life away from the media. That choice should be respected. Public facts show her as a serious artist. They show her as a person who gave time, talent, and resources to theater and culture. That is the stronger story.

The Sad Loss of E’dena Hines

One sad event linked to Morgan Freeman’s family was the death of E’dena Hines in 2015. Public reports described her as Morgan Freeman’s step-granddaughter. The Guardian, citing the Associated Press, reported that she was found with stab wounds in Manhattan and that Lamar Davenport was arrested at the scene.

This tragedy brought painful public attention to the family. It should be handled with care. E’dena Hines was a person with her own life, dreams, and loved ones. This part of the story should not be used for gossip. It is only a reminder that families linked to fame also face real pain.

Why Myrna Colley-Lee Still Matters

Myrna Colley-Lee still matters because she shows the value of quiet work. Actors may stand in the light. But designers help build the world around them. Without costume design, many stage stories would feel empty.

Her career also shows young artists that behind-the-scenes work can have a deep impact. You do not need to be the loudest person in the room to make a difference. You can work with fabric, color, ideas, and care. You can help people see history in a new way.

Myrna Colley-Lee also matters because she helped keep Black theater stories strong. She helped show culture through clothes. She supported arts groups. She gave materials to help students and theater programs. That kind of work lasts.

Final Thoughts

Myrna Colley-Lee is much more than Morgan Freeman’s former wife. She is a respected costume designer, set designer, art curator, and arts supporter. Her work helped bring stage stories to life. Her clothes showed age, class, pain, hope, and history.

Her story reminds us that theater is not made by actors alone. It is made by many skilled people working together. Myrna Colley-Lee’s work shows how powerful those hidden hands can be. She may not always stand in the spotlight, but her art has helped many stories shine.

FAQs

Who is Myrna Colley-Lee?

Myrna Colley-Lee is an American costume designer, set designer, art curator, and arts supporter. She is also known as the former wife of actor Morgan Freeman.