Stevie Vallance
A collection of projects by Stevie Vallance's production company.
The Calgary Sun
by Lisa Wilton
"Closest Thing To A Legend"
Stevie Vallance didn't know a thing about Patsy Cline when she first got the starring role in a Vancouver production of A CLOSER WALK WITH PATSY CLINE in 1993.
But today, she feels almost a cosmic connection with the country music legend. "We have the same birth date, and apparently we share the same numerology," she says excitedly. "I know a lot about her now. I really respect her because she was such a strong woman for that time and had such a big heart as well.
"She was very ambitious and at that time, for ladies in the south, the word ambition was taboo. You were locked up if you even thought about it." Vallance is back in Calgary for the third time portraying the singer - who died in an airplane crash in 1963 - in Alberta Theatre Projects' production of the musical, running until Aug. 14 at the Arts Center's Martha Cohen Theatre. The show was first staged at ATP in 1993 and returned a year later because of popular demand.
"I think the show's popularity is still strong because Patsy never dies. Her music lives on and on," says Vallance, who has been busy pursuing a jazz singing career since she was last here.
"I think she shook the foundation of country music, then and now. You still hear people doing Patsy Cline."
The bubbly, confident performer admits she is finding the show easier to do this time around as everything "just fell into place," even after five years.
"Because I've been doing my own jazz thing, I'm finding the vocal aspect of the show easier," she says. On Aug. 15 Vallance will host a special wrap-up party and SPCA benefit concert. The show will be a chance to hear Vallance sing songs from her latest CD, 'Practically Naked', which is being sold on her website and "the trunk of my car."
"It would be wonderful to raise some money for the animals in Calgary," says Vallance, who travels everywhere with her two dogs, Topo Jee Jo and Bijou.
Tickets for the fund-raiser are $20 in advance and $25 at the door and are available through Ticketmaster.