She might be just one human being but when Tomlin is onstage there’s a whole cast of characters who show up to entertain audiences. More than a dozen of them will be showcased on Friday when she makes a stop at the Aronoff Center in downtown Cincinnati: the precocious six-year-old Edith Ann; the irascible telephone operator Ernestine; the aging beauty advisor Madame Lupe; Lucille the rubber addict; and prim Judith Beasley from Calumet City, Ind. No evening like this would be complete without some philosophizing from Tomlin’s most complex and memorable character, Trudy, the schizophrenic street lady who was the focal point of The Search for Intelligent Life in the Universe, her Tony Award winning one-woman show.
Tomlin’s career has encompassed just about every form of entertainment you can think of: She earned an Academy Award nomination for her role in Robert Altman’s 1975 film Nashville and played an iconic part of Violet Newstead working with Dolly Parton in 9 to 5 (1980). She’s been featured in multiple TV series (Murphy Brown, Will and Grace and The West Wing), and she’s currently making regular appearances in the current season of Desperate Housewives. She’s a star, and that’s the truth. $37.50-$57.50.
Get details, buy tickets and find nearby bars and restaurants here.
This article appears in Jan 28 – Feb 3, 2009.
