Vincent Victoria Presents JUST LENA Virtually

Singer Lena Horne was more than a pretty face. She was also a fierce advocate for the equal rights of women and for the civil rights of African Americans. Horne stood up and spoke out for those rights at a time when it was unpopular, costly career wise , and potentially life threatening for her to do so. Jump some nearly 70 years since the peak of Horne's career to 2020 and the singer's tireless efforts for equality are still relevant today.

Playwright/Producer Vincent Victoria is remounting his play Just Lena virtually August 7th and 8th on Vincent Victoria Presents' Facebook Page live and on ZOOM at 8 pm which will be near the date of the 57th anniversary of the famous March on Washington from 1963.

Says Victoria "Horne of course was stunning to look at and there are tons of still photos and a few movies from her days in the Golden Years of Hollywood to attest to that. At first glance, her beauty would make her seem like an untouchable GODDESS on screen similar to Greta Garbo. But from my research on her life, I found that she was really just a down to earth Diva that was not above or afraid to use a few colorful words to get her point across when dealing with powerful men like MGM's Louis B. Mayer or out and out racists. Even though Horne was held in high esteem by the African American community as an entertainer during her lifetime much like Beyonce is today, but she faced much more pressure to be perfect as the preeminent Black Female entertainer of her time because of the strict segregation laws.

Just Lena ,a dramatization on Horne's life, is Vincent Victoria Presents fourth full virtual production during the pandemic and the company has been at the forefront of offering productions virtually to Houston audiences."Even though it is challenging to pull off a fully memorized script meant for the stage using this format, I don't want there to be a decline in the product that we as a company present to our base audience and for newer audience members that may not be familiar with our work. The actors are still expected to be off book for the performances as this is not a reading and they are given detailed notes; just as they would if they were doing it for the stage." says Victoria.

Some of the actors featured in Just Lena are Damonica Renee as older Lena, Tenise Farria as younger Lena, Lindsey Steel as Ava Gardner, Kenneth Grissom as Redd Foxx, Bucky Rhea as Louis B. Mayer, Jacqueline Harrison as

Hattie MC Daniel, Jasmin Roland as Josephine Baker and Wykesha King as La Wanda Page.

For more information on Just Lena, please visit https://www.vincentvictoriapresents.com

Admission to view the performance is free but donations can be made in kind on the website.

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