Treemonisha became Scott Joplin`s obsession after its composition sometime in the first decade of this century. In 1911 he published the piano score and in 1915 he held a trial reading for potential backers of the show. The backers were not interested however and the show was not performed in full until 1972 in Atlanta Georgia in a concert performance by the Atlanta Symphony and the Morehouse College Music Department with Robert Shaw conducting. Its professional premiere was with the Houston Grand Opera in May of 1975.