Lisa Tharps
REVIEWS:THE WOMEN OF BREWSTER PLACE, the musical at Celebration Theatre:LA WEEKLY..."Among the best scenes is a visit to Kiswana by her well-heeled mother (Lisa Tharps). Its not just Naila Aladdin Sanders personality-defining costumes that give Tharps such material to work with the matronly skirt and hat, heels and matching bag, the clinging earrings that hang on to every word sputtered from Mom's sneering lips an inch or so away. Among the R&B, ballad and gospel ditties is Mrs. Brownes Then Know This (Daughter of Mine) sung by Tharps from a place deep inside her bones. It comes accompanied with tiny drops of spittle. This is more than a performance, its a conjuring of spirits. " Steven Leigh Morris _____SCHOOLHOUSE ROCK:LA TIMES..."The ever-remarkable Lisa Tharps adds full-throated chanteuse to her distinguished resume as proprietor Nina." David C. Nichols BACKSTAGE WEST..."Standing out even among this talented cast, backed by a tight, three-piece band, are Tharps, with her vocal prowess and priceless facial expressions" -Jon SteeleyMEDEA:LA TIMES... "...Lisa Tharps, who plays Medea at the Boston Court, is measured, queenly and magnificently vindictive. Tharps' Medea may think twice before murdering her sons, but she doesn't think thrice. Her anguish, while real, is tamped down -- banked embers that will soon blaze into a firestorm..." -F. Kathleen FoleyBACKSTAGE WEST"...Tharps is a marvel as Medea, eloquent in her rage in a thrillingly dynamic performance...The rest of the cast is very good, but this is Tharps' show, and for two hours she owns that stage with ferocity and wit." -Terry MorganCURTAIN UP"When we finally meet Medea, in red and black, hair swept back, she glows like an ember. A "fury," she lights up the stage--beautiful, fearsome and wounded. Emotion flows through her, from hurt and pain to loathing and revenge. Her movements are effortless and fluid. She owns the stage. Anyone in her way will surely pay the price. Tharps adds depth to each line, nodding to herself, and questioning the chorus around her. Even when she flatters Creon's ego or appeals to Aegeus' masculinity we know she is completely in control." -Ariana MufsonLA WEEKLY"a solid supporting cast and superlative design back up the always- strong Lisa Tharps, storming as jilted Medea in a production lacking nuance. Tharps Medea is less a whirlwind than a charging bull, all muscle and rage, pacing around in red silk like a lick of fire. Pride, not pain, is her ruler." -Amy NicholsonREVIEW PLAYS"Novinskis rare Medea features uniformly genuine performances in both the large and smaller roles. Tharps is mesmeric throughout, segueing from incredible sorrow to exhausted humor to incredibly cold heartlessness in the silvery flash of that ominous butcher knife symbolically stuck in a cutting board..." -Travis Michael Holder_____THE TOWER:LA TIMES...The arresting Lisa Tharps REVIEW PLAYS...Its a towering presentation, with Lisa Tharps giving a stunning portrayal of Ruth BACKSTAGE WEST...Tharps is mesmerizing LA WEEKLY... Tharps performance is a kind of tower unto itself each moment thoroughly considered and perfectly orchestrated, with sounds that seem to come less from her vocal chords than from some deeply embedded intestine. ______THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES:Vancouver Sun... "Tharps, my favorite monologuist to date, came off as confident, grounded and earthy. In particular, she poses a knack for abruptly shifting emotional gears in a spectacular fashion; thus providing surprising frissons that made her performance crackle with life." -Adrian Chamberlain on News... Strong and Solid Tharps sends the crowd into spasms of laughter Fred Sokol
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