Harper returns with Divas show

Edith Piaf, Shirley Bassey, Dusty Springfield with a bit of Madonna thrown in for good measure " these and other stunning singing stars come alive in New Zealand entertainer Ali Harper's show, Legendary Divas.

Having recently starred as the lead, Donna, in Hamilton Operatic Society's smash-hit production of Mamma Mia, Christchurch-based Ali Harper was inspired to write Legendary Divas after appearing overseas as a guest entertainer on cruise ships and while performing in America late last year.

Harper was invited to the renowned New York City United Solo Festival in late 2014. She took the one-woman play, Bombshells, to the Big Apple, for which she received the festival's best actress award.

"That just blew me away," she says. "It was such an honour to be invited to perform in New York alongside 130 other one-person shows from all over the world. The award was the icing on the cake."

While in the United States, Ali Harper went on a search for Doris Day, one of her "heroes".

"I've wanted to meet her for so long. I found out where she lives in Carmel and where her Hotel Cypress Inn is. She is 92 now so I respect her privacy, but I would have loved to have knocked on her door and told her how much I adore her. The signed photograph she sent me last year and the selfies I took outside her front gate will just have to satisfy me for now," she says.

Doris will be among the legendary divas Ali will perform in her show.

"These women are not only incredible performers, they all have an interesting and often a very sad story to tell. That's something I incorporate into Legendary Divas, along with a lot of funny bits which includes a little audience participation."

Legendary Divas is at a Clarence St Theatre on October 16 and 17. Tickets from Ticketek.