They started interviewing me on my couch with my wigs beside me. I tried to do impressions of the divas in my impersonation show, but I couldn’t turn on my celebrity personas. I couldn’t answer questions properly or finish my sentences. I was spent and critical of everything I said.

Then we crammed into my bathroom and Christine brought out the best in me, asking me questions about running my own business in the corporate entertainment industry and inspiring women. Christine reminded me that I was the fabulous, courageous woman who had connected with and wowed the audience a few nights earlier. I had changed in seconds during the fundraiser, energetically impersonating Cher, Madonna, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Liza Minnelli, Judy Garland, Tina Turner, Marilyn Monroe, Dolly Parton, Shania Twain, Celine Dion and Julie Andrews.

Months went by after the filming and I figured it would never air because I’d screwed up the footage, the lighting wasn’t good at the club or I was too old and not relevant enough to appeal to the Millennial audience. Silly me.

Somehow they pieced together these quotes of mine:

“We just need to remember courage.  Courage comes from our hearts.”

“Fear needs to be dissolved.”

“Let’s celebrate how fabulous we are as artists and performers.”

I love the beautifully filmed and miraculously edited one-minute video. It reminds me who I am.

See the original version and article here!

_____________________________________________

Tracey Bell is an award-winning comedian and impressionist.

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ME: All of those pictures are of me.

THEM: Nooooooo!

ME: Yes, that’s me as Dolly Parton, Madonna, Julie Andrews, Judy Garland, all of them.

THEM: Not Tina Turner?

ME: Yes, I impersonate everyone in the picture and Shania Twain as well.

THEM: Who’s that?

ME, to the Millennial: That’s Liza Minnelli. She won an Oscar, a Grammy, an Emmy, a Tony and a Golden Globe. She’s one of the most talented entertainers in history.

ME, to the Baby Boomer: That’s Lady Gaga. She’s famous in this century.

THEM: It must take a long time for you to change.

ME: Um, I change in seconds, really, just like it says.

Then they ask me how I do it and what happens onstage when I change. 

“My show is like dominoes”

I explain that there’s no dead air, there’s always something happening onstage. Sometimes I pop behind a low screen while music is playing. I change wigs in front of everyone in 3 seconds, then walk out in a new dress a few seconds later. During some routines, I have volunteers onstage playing instruments while I change. There’s always music or talking.

My show is like dominoes. It takes about 5 hours to set up and rehearse. I arrange change screens onstage, style wigs, iron costumes, carefully set things in very specific positions behind curtains, test my microphone, rehearse cues and volumes with the sound technician, confirm my introduction with the Emcee, co-ordinate the lighting, go over the cues again, trouble shoot, braid my long hair so that it fits under the wigs, take an hour on my make-up, hopefully eat, secure my braids around my headset microphone, layer my costumes very precisely and make my way back-stage.

Then, I change in seconds to become a dozen divas.

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Tracey Bell will become Marilyn Monroe to host the Women in Film and Television Spotlight Awards on June 19^th. She’ll do impersonations of Judy Garland as Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, Julie Andrews from The Sound of Music and others at the event that she’s hosted twice before. She’ll also perform at A Loving Spoonful’s Project Empty Bowl on June 21^st before portraying 13 different divas during her unique, interactive celebrity impersonation show at Celebrities Nightclub on July 13^th.

At the July 13^th show, Bell will change in seconds seamlessly to perform her hilarious impressions of Celine Dion, Cher, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and more. With her warm, enthusiastic style of connecting with the audience, Tracey will inspire them into doing a kick-line with Liza Minnelli, performing guitar solos with Janis Joplin and being Boy Toys with Madonna. She stays in character, improvising with people throughout the show. Her joy and energetic playfulness are contagious.

Partial proceeds from her July 13^th show will benefit A Loving Spoonful, where Tracey is an honorary director. She raised $2300 for the charity at her April 6^th show, where she had the audience in stitches when she auctioned herself off as Cher.

Born in Edmonton, she’s made her living onstage since 1985, when she performed a Tina Turner impersonation just for fun and the nightclub she worked at checking coats hired her full-time as their in-house act.

An entertainment entrepreneur, Bell became self-employed in 1988 and moved to Vancouver in 1990 to build her one-woman business where she is a force as her own manager, marketing director, producer and costume designer. She has travelled from Whitehorse to Halifax and internationally, mostly performing at private corporate events.

Tracey Bell has returned to public performances, disproving the stigmas of middle age by adding impressions of millennial artists to her award-winning show. Exceptionally fit and looking better than ever, she’s ready for her comeback.

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“I’m terrified to add new celebrities to my show.”

So why didn’t I do her?  I’ve impersonated dozens of celebrities over the years and created my most popular show with icons that audiences love; I’ve been a Celine Dion impersonator, a Madonna impersonator, a Cher impersonator, a Dolly Parton impersonator, a Janis Joplin impersonator, a Marilyn Monroe impersonator, a Tina Turner impersonator and a Liza Minnelli impersonator. I’m terrified to add new celebrities to my show because in the past I’ve added stars like Shania Twain and Lady Gaga and the audience response hasn’t felt as good as it does with my favorite divas. I’ve worked hard researching, rehearsing, designing costumes that can be changed in seconds and finding the right wigs that can be styled to make me look like the people I’m impersonating. I’ve paid for photo shoots and promotional materials, then been disappointed when new performances weren’t up to my standards. I’m afraid of failure. To suck on stage is to die!

“I’m afraid of failure. To suck on stage is to die!”

My quick-change show, 8 Divas in 44 Minutes, has a formula that works and gets me standing ovations. I’ve had success beyond my dreams performing as Cher and the other divas. I’m paid thousands of dollars to do what I love. I’ve been onstage in front of corporate audiences from Halifax to Shanghai and from Whitehorse to Playa Del Carmen. I’ve won Entertainer of the Year Awards. What’s going to happen if I change? I’ll see soon. It’s time. I’ve just gotta ignite the light and let it shine, ‘cause baby I’m a firework.

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As a celebrity impersonator and corporate entertainer, Tracey Bell understands just how different each client audience can be. In every instance, she adapts her shows to suit the intended audience to make her performances appropriate for all groups.

Here are Tracey Bell’s thoughts on how she adapts her show for specific audiences. Furthermore, she also describes some of the politics that can come with being a female corporate entertainer.

The Art of Adapting Shows for Different Groups

Earlier this year, I performed at a corporate conference at the Empress Hotel in Victoria, British Columbia. The process leading up to the event proved to be especially challenging.

I had heard about a few of the performers that they had hired for prior events; Kenny Shaw, Johnny Bagpipes and several other men – good acts but all male.

My show had been promoted to them previously, but initially, they were afraid that the women I portrayed might be “too sexy”.

For the record, I perform a funny, corporate-appropriate show and have dozens of letters of reference from conservative clients who say as much.

“Oh, I see. She’s funny.”

In my shows, I am respectful and it’s apparent from the response of the audience. I’ve performed at Family Events, at Fairs and Exhibitions, and in Shopping Centres. Catholic Nuns approved of my performance when I hosted Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival in Dauphin, Manitoba. One nun admitted that she had reservations at first and then laughed when she saw me, even my Cher impersonation; “Oh, I see. She’s funny”.

I have played the Chateau Whistler New Year’s Eve Gala five times. Affluent families from all over the world spend thousands of dollars to be in Whistler that week. They bring their children to the exclusive party and I invite the kids on stage to perform with me. Audience participation has always been a staple of my shows. In this instance, it was also how I won over people who can afford to see any performer in the world.

“I felt like a huge rock star.”

In the case of this recent Victoria conference, my sales representative was persistent and finally convinced the organizers to hire me.

As a matter of fact, the audience turned out to be one of my most appreciative yet. They gave me a rowdy standing ovation. Everyone, including an elderly couple who needed to help each other up, danced through the encore, Cher’s “If I Could Turn Back Time”. I wish I had a picture. I felt like a huge Rock Star. I didn’t expect the reaction I got from them.

Cher, Liza Minnelli, Dolly Parton and Tina Turner are all incredibly talented female role models who are now over the age of 70. Fear had previously blinded the prospective clients to hiring someone who impersonates them. They didn’t see that they had been discriminating by hiring men, “to be safe”.

Based on the positive outcome of this experience, I hope that they continue to give women the opportunity to perform for them while also keeping in mind that a professional entertainer will have the means to adapt to their intended audience.

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Here is Tracey Bell’s recap of the 2016 Spotlight Awards for Women in Film & Television Vancouver and her experience as a host!

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“Do whatever you like. You can’t lose.”

On June 20th, I hosted and performed at the WIFTV Spotlight Awards for the second time. Just like the last time, it was an honour!

Having hosted and performed at the 2014 WIFTV Spotlight Awards, I decided to change things up this time. First of all, I had to choose which numbers to perform and divas to impersonate. Should I start with a quick-change medley or Janis Joplin’s “Mercedes Benz”? I hadn’t impersonated Janis Joplin or Madonna the last time. I asked one of the organizers what I should do and she said, “Do whatever you like. You can’t lose.”

She was right.

Imagine a room filled with people who support and celebrate highly accomplished, talented, strong, inspiring, creative, generous, and diverse women. They showed their appreciation for my performances as Celine Dion, Cher, Marilyn Monroe, Liza Minnelli and other celebrities with unprecedented enthusiasm.

Audience participation went exceptionally well at the WIFTV Spotlight Awards in 2014. So I incorporated it in this year’s performances. When Gigi Saul Guerrero accepted her award for Artistic Achievement, her “Mexican Family” – as she calls them – went crazy with wild cheering. I brought them onstage to be in Janis Joplin’s band. Her father brought down the house with his fabulous rubber guitar solo.

During my Madonna impersonation, I introduced one of the presenters, only to discover that he wasn’t there. So I spontaneously entertained the group with “Vogue”. An amazing group of men from the audience performed along as Boy Toys.

Near the end of the WIFTV Spotlight Awards, winners in gowns and their friends danced on stage during my Cher impersonation.

“The speeches were the best I’ve ever heard.”

Have you seen Sherlock starring Benedict Cumberbatch or Dr. Who or the cult classic Tank Girl? They were directed by this year’s Woman of the Year, Rachel Talalay. She’s a Director, Producer, Professor and Activist, as are many of the other award winners. Four of this year’s Award Recipients are Actors as well as Film Creators. As talented as these deserving winners were, their acceptance speeches were even better, perhaps the best I’ve ever heard. As a matter of fact, I would rate them above the Oscars or any of the dozens of Awards Shows I’ve been a part of.

Sarah Kalil, President of Women in Film & Television Vancouver, said the speeches are especially inspiring because the recipients love and support the incredible community that they are addressing. Here’s a transcript of Rachel Talay’s speech. I wish I had a video of her powerful presentation.

Some of the Women in Film & Television Vancouver award winners have received international recognition and awards. Even so, they still don’t get the same opportunities that their male colleagues receive. They’ve had to be better than most men in order to get where they are.

Two supportive men received awards. Walter Daroshin, President of Troika Productions, received the Honoured Friend Award. He listed numerous women he had worked with. He didn’t choose them because they were women; he chose them because they were the best people for the jobs. Claude Joli-Couer, Government Film Commissioner and NFB Chairperson, received a standing ovation after his moving acceptance speech. He announced that half of the National Film Board’s funding will go to films by women and used Justin Trudeau’s line, “Because it’s 2016”. This made his speech and announcement especially relevant.

“It was a lot of fun!”

I wasn’t the star of the Women in Film and Television Spotlight Awards. The stars were Mary Galloway, Mina Shum, Christine Larsen, Kailey Spear, Sam Spear, Kat Montagu, Emily Yakashira and Sabrina Furminger, and the others above.

What an incredible evening! It was a lot of fun!

Thank you, Women in Film & Television Vancouver!

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