PERSONALITY PEEKS:
BEBE NEUWIRTH, Actress/Singer
by FRANK O'DONNELL
April 2006
Bebe Neuwirth was Lilith.
She's not Lilith anymore.
"I think people know I played the part," said the multi-talented Neuwirth in a recent phone interview, "but they come to whatever I'm doing, and then let go of it."
She says she's very different from Dr. Lilith Sternin Crane, the character she played on the long-running NBC sitcom, "Cheers." It's a role that earned her two Emmys. "If you hang onto that image, it's a shame. It was a great character, but it was just a character."
On Saturday, April 15, Neuwirth will appear at the Providence Performing Arts Center with the Rhode Island Philharmonic. Part of the Pops/ Phil/ PPAC series, the show is titled "Bebe Neuwirth Sings Weill and Kander & Ebb."
"Their music lives together nicely," says Neuwirth, and they have a similar emotional appeal. "This is pretty much what I want to sing."
Neuwirth worked very closely with her music partner, Leslie Stifelman, who she first met while performing in "Chicago." Neuwirth, a Tony- and Emmy-award winner, starred as Velma Kelly. Stifelman was one of the on-stage pianists. "She's a great musician."
The pair put the show together because "I kept getting invited to sing."
This is Neuwirth's first time working in Providence, and about the tenth time this show has been presented.
Stifelman will step in to conduct the Philharmonic. Both of them will fly in and rehearse once with the group before the actual show.
"This is just to the left of flying by the seat of your pants," Neuwirth joked.
I wonder what else she's doing these days. "This is pretty much it. I do have a few things in the works, I just can't talk about them." She does let on that they're theater and film projects.
Right now, she's doing what she loves to do. "There's not much planning or scheming involved. I love to work, I love to perform. That's it."
Neuwirth resists using the word "career" to describe what she does. "It implies a certain degree of planning and design that's just not there."
I ask if there's one thing she's done that she likes better than the rest. "There is no favorite thing. I've had a lot of incredible jobs, and some very uncomfortable jobs."
I wonder if she'll tell me about the uncomfortable ones. She laughs a little. "You can ask, but I'm not going to tell you."
She blames poor writing for the unpleasant and uncomfortable experiences she's had. "Better written parts are easier to play. If they're not well written, you have to work very hard to make them make sense."
Neuwirth says she won't name names, unless of course it's for a fellow performer's personal protection. Usually, a warning about another performer, in the form of a heads up.
Again, I can't help but ask.
Again, she laughs. "I'm not going to tell you. Unless it's that kind of night, and we're swapping battle stories. Then…"
Reprinted with permission from The Valley Breeze
