Lawrence Keeps 'Em Laughing with Two Woman Show

Media Contact:

Kristen Gleason
Director of Marketing
The Paramount Theater
215 East Main Street
Charlottesville, VA 22902
434.979.1922 ext. 103
kristen@theparamount.net

For Immediate Release

September 28, 2006

Emmy Award-winning comedienne Vicki Lawrence is one of the most beloved television personalities of her generation. Plucked out of total obscurity as a high school senior, Lawrence went on to become part of the now-legendary cast of The Carol Burnett Show.  There she created her most endearing character, Thelma Harper -- better known to fans as "Mama" -- at the ripe old age of 24. 

Fans of Lawrence and her opinionated alter-ego will have the opportunity to see both live and in person when Vicki Lawrence and Mama: A Two-Woman Show is center stage at The Paramount Theater on Saturday, October 14 at 8 pm.  Sponsor for this performance is CogswellStone.

The multi-talented Lawrence was plucked out of relative obscurity as a high school senior.  After sending Carol Burnett a letter and local newspaper article that mentioned their resemblance, Lawrence was contacted by Burnett, who was looking for an actress to play her kid sister on her new variety series. 

The rest is television history. The Carol Burnett Show premiered in the fall of 1967, the same year Vicki entered UCLA to study Theater Arts.  She spent eleven years with Burnett, earning an Emmy Award and five Emmy nominations.  After the show ended, Vicki went on to star in her own TV series, Mama's Family, with Ken Berry, Dorothy Lyman, Beverly Archer, and Allan Kayser.  The series consistently topped the ratings for its entire six-year run of original shows, and Mama has attained almost a cult status among legions of loyal television viewers.

In the current Two-Woman Show, Lawrence will take the stage first. "My new show will not be a retrospective," she explains. "We are designing a show that is a mixture of stand-up comedy, music and my observations about real life."  Then Mama will have her say.  "I think people will get a kick out of the things Mama has an opinion about. We're creating new material with a more modern and cutting edge. Where Mama is concerned, expect the unexpected. There's really nothing she can't do," Lawrence says.  "I hope people will be pleasantly surprised by a side of Vicki they may never have seen … I know they will be looking forward to Mama, and for her part, that crazy old gal will be up to the challenge." 

Seats for the October 14 performance of Vicki Lawrence and Mama: A Two-Woman Show are $55, $50, $47, and $44.   Tickets and further details are available online, or through The Paramount's Box Office at 434.979.1333.

 For more information about Vicki Lawrence, please visit www.vickilawrence.com.