Fair show

Georgia Wood wants to put a bit of light in people's life by using the colour of her hair and the strength of other fair-haired women of our time in her new show. Emma Goodwin has a front-row seat.

How do you make a blonde laugh on a Wednesday? Tell her a joke on a Monday.

We have all heard the jokes. We have laughed at some and maybe not so much at others, but everyone has one in their repertoire.

Being a blonde can be seen as a blessing or a curse, depending on what shade you are on.

Attitudes can range from blonde being a sign of purity to an overt sexual statement, a measure of intelligence, or a pinnacle of beauty.

Actress and singer Georgia Wood is bringing her one-woman show, Highlights: The Blondes and their Songs, to Centrepoint Theatre to celebrate the best of blonde and the fair-haired women who have made their mark in history.

"It's a sassy salute to some of the great vocalists and personalities of our time," says Wood.

"Those Hollywood bombshells, divas of jazz, country, soul, and pop, all with one thing in common – that they're blonde."

Completely qualified to do the show, after all she is a natural blonde, Wood knows full well the trials and tribulations that go with the hair colour. She is also good at poking fun at herself – she is wearing a sweatshirt with the words "I'm blonde, please speak slowly" emblazoned across the front.

"Yes, it's frustrating when people make assumptions about intelligence depending on your hair colour. It's a social stigma and it's very interesting watching how people react and respond to such a simple thing as hair colour."

So interesting, in fact, that Wood is going to use her experiences and the show as subject matter for her Master of Arts degree.

An accomplished vocalist, Wood's first stage experience was as Shirley Temple, the curly haired cutie of The Good Ship Lollipop fame.

"That was such a cliche moment now when I look back on it, all dimples and ringlets," laughs Wood.

The show has been two years in the making, which is standard for a show of this type, she says .

"You think about them for a while, plan them in your head, work a few angles. and slowly they take shape."

Wood wants her audience to remember the songs, and the women she portrays, as amazing.

"All these women are so different in personalities. In the show, I aim to highlight their self-determination and self-realisation."

But this is not an impersonation show. Anyone expecting to see Wood transform into Marilyn, Mae, or Madonna, will be disappointed.

"I'm performing as myself and as a celebration of these women, not an impersonation."

The depiction of each woman is subtle, with the essence of each one's persona oozing through via posture, body language, and voice.

"It's taken lots of research and study of how they portrayed themselves, on stage, and in front of the camera."

During her research for the show, Wood discovered a lot of the women were really funny, and their wit was another facet she wanted to celebrate.

The women portrayed in the show shaped Wood's life in many ways.

"They all inspired me in one way or another. I was pretty ruthless about who I chose. Some made the cut and some didn't."

One of the most recognisable modern-day blondes is Madonna who Wood says is a true chameleon.

"This is a world where you make your own destiny and Madonna takes control of her destiny over and over again.

"Some of us are born blonde, some of us achieve blonde and some of us have blonde thrust upon them."

Marilyn Monroe was one of those people who were moulded into blonde, and while many consider her to be dumb, she was in fact very intelligent.

"She knew how to work it. At times she would be Norma Jean walking down the street, and no-one would recognise her, and then she would channel the screen siren, and with a shift in posture, the whole street would come to a standstill as the realisation of who she was dawned on them."

Wood herself admits that sometimes she cashes in on the blonde perception.

While there are some underlying messages in the show, you will have to look hard to find them, because this is not, Wood says, about flying a political flag for blondes, but rather a chance to reflect on how much joy there is in the world.

She says she wants her audience to have fun, celebrate the lives of the women she is highlighting and go away with a smile on their face.

The last words should probably go to another modern blonde, Debbie Harry, who once said, "It's not about being blonde – it's about being who you want to be."

Highlights: The Blondes and their Songs, at Centrepoint, from tomorrow to March 27.

- © Fairfax NZ News