Sharon Owens "Performing AS..."
Barbra Streisand
Becoming Babs
Fox's new celebrity impersonation contest Performing As may seem silly to
some, but for a contestant who grew up in St. Petersburg, it's a way to honor
her father - and Barbra Streisand.
By ERIC DEGGANS, Times Television Critic
© St. Petersburg Times
published September 2, 2003
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She's a suburban mom and part-time music teacher, born and raised
in St. Petersburg, who learned her love for pop singer Barbra Streisand from
a doting dad.
But when vocalist Sharon Owens makes her national TV debut tonight, it will be as Streisand - mimicking the superstar singer for an oddball Fox TV series dubbed Performing As that features a talent competition between celebrity impersonators.
Unveiled Aug. 26, Performing As is a six-week contest featuring a crew of five celebrity impersonators each week, buffed and trained by a bevy of makeup artists, vocal coaches and choreographers to ape their idol's closest moves.
Hundreds of hopefuls auditioned and were winnowed down to those who appear onscreen, vying for $20,000 if they win an episode and a $200,000 grand prize. ("It's not Survivor money ... but you don't have to eat any bugs, either," Owens quipped.)
We caught up with Owens, 36, at her home in Diamond Bar, Calif. - she moved there about a dozen years ago, after graduating from the University of South Florida - where she fielded a few cheeky questions about what it takes to play the queen of camp on national television.
Times: Why Streisand?
Owens: My father, he worked for Florida Power for 30 years. ... He died 12 years ago, the same year I moved to California. My father was a Barbra Streisand fan, and when I would sing, he would always critique me a little and hide around the corner and watch me singing. When he died, it was a huge part of me that I lost. And Fox allowed me to pay tribute to my own father and pay tribute to Barbra. ... I can never say thank you enough.
Times: Is this something you've done professionally before?
Owens: I dabbled in it, but not at all to the extent that Fox has done for me. I mean, I'd been in a couple cabaret shows locally. ... If I made $20 that night I was lucky. But ... Fox gave me a real professional look and professional stage and the lights and the sound. They really created a fantastic illusion. ... Hopefully, cross my fingers, I can make a career of this.
Times: Are you prepared for the legions of drag queens who may see you and say, "I can do Babs better than her!"
Owens: I am so nonjudgmental. I am a huge Barbra Streisand fan and everything that comes with it. I have all of her albums, I have most of her CDs, videos, pictures, posters. I don't have them around the house, like I'm a stalker, but I've collected all her stuff for years. So I'd love to talk to them. ... We can talk makeup, we can talk hair, absolutely.
Times: So what does it take to pull off the perfect Barbra Streisand?
Owens: The studying and the lessons I had with the vocal coach. ... Pulling out a Barbra Streisand voice, ... there were certain things I had to nail, and certain mannerisms. It just didn't come overnight. It was a process I had to dig deep in ... listen to certain intonations that she made. Personally, to pull off Barbra Streisand, I think it's quite a task.
Times: At the end of a talent show such as American Idol, the contest is supposed to unearth a singer talented enough to handle a major label record deal. Won't this contest just unearth somebody who sounds and looks a whole lot like someone else who already has a record deal?
Owens: Are you kidding me? ... Just like an artist that paints, they can copy someone else's art, but I'm sure they have their own talent otherwise. ... They must have talent. In my case ... I don't think just anyone can sing Barbra Streisand. I just don't think the normal Joe Schmo singer can nail those things. I think it does take talent.
Times: Not that WE would write this, but there is one newspaper reviewer who called Performing As "karaoke gone too far ... the training ground for the celebrity impersonators of tomorrow and little else." Reaction?
Owens: I say, you try to pull it off. Tell them to try to pull off Barbra Streisand. ... But that's the cocky side of me, and every so often it comes out. Celebrity impersonators ... they do get a bad rap. But I would not have set foot on that stage without ... nailing her. ... I'm going to make sure that my tribute to Barbra is none other than the best.
Times: Is there a part of you that hopes Barbra catches the show and calls with a record deal?
Owens: I really hope that if Barbra does watch me, being her perfectionist self ... I hope she's flattered. We're not ever trying to make fun of their career or ever make jest of them. Of course, my ultimate dream is if someone would want me to sing as Sharon and get a recording contract. But I wouldn't mind paying tribute to Barbra worldwide, as well.