March 14, 2002

Liza Vann brings one-woman show
to UWMC Tuesday

By Joy Marquardt
Special to the Daily Herald

The healing power of humor is the focus of "The Top of the Bottom Half" a one-woman show by actress/producer Liza Vann coming to the University of Wisconsin-Marathon County Theater on Tuesday.

Held in conjunction with Women's History Month as part of the Designed for Diversity series, Vann comically reviews her experiences growing up in the South and gives advice about the choices people face throughout their lives.

The title "Top of the Bottom Half" refers to Vann's family status as the seventh child in a family of 12. Her show also deals with a brother's serious drug addiction and focuses on her own confrontation with breast cancer.

"The show she has written is all about taking charge of your own self as a woman," said Jean Greenwood, lecture and fine arts coordinator for UWMC. "It's poignant, it's wise and it's witty."

Opting for a less-than-conventional treatment for breast cancer at the time she was diagnosed, Vann encourages her audience to research their medical problems and to be involved with their treatment options.

"Cancer is not a gunshot wound," Vann said. "Both are serious, only one is urgent. Slow down, park fear outside the door and get very clear on what is being said. I did this disease about as well as it gets done. But as well as I did it, I want others to do it better."

Vann, who obtained a bachelor of arts degree in the dramatic arts from Queens University in Charlotte, N.C., has had leading roles in the off-Broadway productions of "Ladies in Waiting," "Teasers" and "The Frankenstein Affair."

As an independent film producer, Vann is known for her award winning production of "The Radicals" and "Song of Leaves."

In addition to her performance at UWMC, Vann will conduct a workshop for Wausau Hospital's After Reach program at 6:30 p.m. on Monday in the Terrace Room of UWMC.

"We try to do community outreach whenever we have something of this importance," Greenwood said. "Her message is honorable, noble and very valid."

Vann also will make class appearances for UWMC students in Introduction to Theatre, Introduction to Film and Personal Health and Wellness.

"She was one of the featured speakers at UW-Eau Claire," Greenwood said. "They have a program similar to ours and it was very well received."

The Designed for Diversity series is supported by the Student Life and Interest Committee and by a grant from the Judd S. Alexander Foundation.