Elisabeth Withers-Mendes
Age: "I'm 18. With all this experience."Currently: Playing the sexually-fluid, slinky chanteuse Shug Avery in the musical adaptation of Alice Walker's classic novel The Color Purple at the Broadway Theatre.
Hometown: Joliet, Illinois. "I went straight from that small town to Boston for my undergrad work at Berklee College of Music. Left there and came to NYU to do my Master's. Graduated, and then just stayed!"
A New World: Like many members of The Color Purple team, Withers-Mendes is not only new to Broadway, but also hails from the pop music world. After years of singing back-up for a slew of recording divas Cher, Celine, J-Lo, a recommendation from Valerie Simpson of Ashford & Simpson to The Color Purple producer Quincy Jones helped Withers-Mendes land the role of Shug.
Broadway Baby: The Color Purple is the first play Withers-Mendes has performed in since she was a kid in Joliet. "Broadway was a dream of mine when I was playing a fairy in A Midsummer Night's Dream in high school," she says. "But that was like a fading thought, you know?" Acknowledging that the opportunity has been "almost overwhelming," Withers-Mendes says, "even the agent I've been working with said, 'Elisabeth, I don't think it's sunk in just how big this is—you're working on Broadway!' Because I just see it as working with great talent, great musicians, a great director, great producers... it really hasn't dawned on me the magnitude of it. Which I think is sort of good. It keeps me grounded."
Listen Up: As for how she developed her critically acclaimed performance, Withers-Mendes has two words: "Gary Griffin. Stayin' on me like white on rice!" The novice actress says the director's constant guidance has taught her everything from motivation to intention to keeping an eight-shows-a-week gig fresh. "Before we even started the run I looked at him and said, 'I'm a woman that loves change. I like something different every night. And I'm noticing that you guys don't change—it's the same song, the same blocking... I can't do that.'" Griffin was undaunted by his novice star's fears, who went on to ask him how to keep the show fresh from night to night. "He said, 'You listen.'" he recalls. "Now, how profound is that? So every time I come on stage—and LaChanze might look at me different, or be pissed in a certain scene where she was sort of just upset the night before—I listen. The responses and actions could be different every night. It's exhilerating."
The L Word: Shug's decades-long love affair with Celie is central to The Color Purple. Still, Withers-Mendes says, "I get a little disturbed when I hear people say, ‘Oh, it's a lesbian story.' I think it's a love-hurt story! It's about people overcoming obstacles. It's deeper than a kiss, or standing up nude in a bathtub and touching each other's private parts." "But it's a part of black culture," she observes, "they just don't want to discuss. I think a lot of people don't come out and say, ‘I'm gay,' because it sort of minimizes the entire picture of who they are. There are a lot of women like that in our community who don't talk about it because it makes people focus on that rather than the beauty and wisdom and wit and contributions they're bringing into the community." Or could it be that Celie and Shug's unique relationship is simply 'a woman thing'? "Yeah," Withers-Mendes says with a laugh, "and you're not supposed to know about that part."
Uncommon Women and Others: Like millions of working mothers, Withers-Mendes struggles to juggle. She credits the pop stars she's worked with for showing her how to strike a healthy balance. "Women like that taught me the business, compassion, and how to be a lady. Like Jennifer [Lopez], loves shoes. She loves perfume and candles, but at the same time she knows how to add her dollars and cents. Valerie [Simpson] is a mother of two, and she taught me that you can have a career and still maintain your household." Without that focus, Withers-Mendes says, "people lose perspective. Personally, I always God put first. I keep my husband next. My daughter next. And when I stay focused like that, then all these other beautiful things—like The Color Purple—will follow."