Fresh from her Sydney Opera House debut this Spring, Varla Jean Merman returns to Nashville for one night only at PLAY on Friday, September 16th at 7:30pm and 9:30pm with Girl With a Pearl Necklace; An Act of Love.
Varla's biological clock is ticking and she is desperate to get married. Will Varla be institutionalized in a state of matrimony or installed in a state institution? Will the girl with a pearl necklace find that special someone who will get under her skin and see through the Vermeer? With a hope chest filled with new videos and songs, Varla Jean Merman's offensive marriage act has something old (Varla), something new (her face), something borrowed (if you stretch the legal definition) and something blue. Melbourne, Australia’s The Age raves, “This show is a scream start to finish!”
Ms. Merman is the alter-ego of the multi-talented comedian and actor Jeffery Roberson who starred in "Hush Up Sweet Charlotte" in San Francisco this past at the Lorraine Hansbury Theatre. His newest show Varla Jean Merman's I'm Not Paying For This! has been playing to sold-out crowds all summer in Provincetown. Jeffery also recently appeared in Charles Ludlam’s "The Mystery of Irma Vep" this past Fall at the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven and at the Provincetown Repertory Theatre. He has spent much of the past year on a world tour of "Girl With A Pearl Necklace" which has played in cities as diverse as Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Amsterdam and Cleveland.
“Before my voluntary exile to Australia and my triumphant extradition back to the United States, I had my sights set on a return to Tennessee,” states the flame-tressed chanteuse. “I’ve performed all over the globe, but I have found Nashville audiences are the best. They are so ready to open their hearts and wallets to a true superstar of stage, screen and
stage.” Ms. Merman is also delighted to announce the recent release of
her new enhanced CD entitled "The White Swallow and Other Delights" which includes her now infamous video of the Faith Hill song "Breathe"!
Varla Jean Merman made her feature film debut in the comedy Girls Will Be Girls. While busy snatching the hearts of millions of new fans with this film, Varla also snatched (legally) the 2003 Outfest Film Festival Best Actor Award and the Best Actress Award from the Aspen HBO Film Festival. She has been seen on Broadway in the Tony Award-winning revival of Chicago. Her television work includes appearances on MTV, HBO and the recurring role of Rosemary Chicken on ABC’s All My Children (sparking a hot new catch-phrase, “Ooh, Bacon!”). The Los Angeles Times calls her, “An indisputable force of nature who displays the dazzling force of a cyclone touching down in a sequin factory!” Time Out New York calls her, “a delirious synthesis of Divine, Karen Finley, and Montserrat Caballé. Even those who think drag has had its day swear that this big, beautiful creature is a kind of demented genius.” The Sydney Police called her, “a public nuisance.”
Varla Jean Merman’s Girl With A Pearl Necklace, An Act of Love
Starring Jeffery Roberson
Written by Jeffery Roberson with Jacques Lamarre and Michael Schiralli Costumes by Philip Heckman Videos filmed by Vidkid Timo and Michael Schiralli Produced by Mark Cortale Directed by Michael Schiralli
Friday, September 16th
2 shows only: 7:30pm and 9:30pm
PLAY
1519 Church Street, Nashville, TN
For reservations please call 615.322.9627
visit www.playdancebar.com/events.html