ArtSpring audiences are in for an extraordinary musical theatre treat this week as Tymisha Harris’ multi-award-winning show Josephine comes to the stage on Monday and Tuesday, April 13-14.
Harris brings Josephine Baker’s revolutionary life as a singer, movie star, WWII spy, civil rights activist and cultural icon to life through cabaret, theatre and dance genres in the show that has won more than 20 awards since it debuted 10 years ago.
Some of the more recent honours came from festivals ranging from the Gothenburg Fringe (2024 Mind Blown Award) to the Montreal Fringe (2022 Patrons Pick and Outstanding English Production) to the Adelaide Fringe (2020 Critic’s Circle Award) and Victoria Fringe (2019 Best Performance, Favourite Solo Show and Overall Pick).
“From ballgown to banana belt, Tymisha Harris is a tour de force!” stated the Broadway Baby theatre review publication.
“(Tymisha Harris) should be starring in a movie version directed by Baz Luhrmann,” wrote actor, producer, TV personality RuPaul Charles about the show.
According to Josephinetheplay.com, “Baker was born in St. Louis in 1906 and achieved only moderate success in the United States, but became an international superstar after moving to Europe in 1924. She starred alongside white romantic leading men in films in the ‘30s, had multiple interracial marriages and homosexual relationships, and performed in men’s clothing before the term ‘drag’ was commonly used/known. She was a spy for the French Resistance in WWII, a civil rights activist and mother to 12 adopted children. Her success often gave her the opportunity to live free from the racial oppression of her home nation, though she never stopped yearning for acceptance in America.”
Harris, who lives in Orlando, Fla., has worked in performing arts for four decades. Her most recent show, A Cabaret of Legends, expands on Josephine by celebrating other female Black singers, from Billie Holliday to Ella Fitzgerald to Beyonce.
The ArtSpring shows begin at 7:30 p.m. both nights.
Tickets are available through ArtSpring, online or at the box office.