The ‘Rebirth’ of Lynn Whitfield

Known for her fierce characters onscreen, Lynn Whitfield is now headed to the stage as another fiery figure in the new stage play, Rebirth! The Musical. Rebirth! will premiere at Atlanta’s Fox Theater on May 30. Along with Whitfield, the play stars Nephew Tommy of the Steve Harvey Morning Show and Q. Parker of the R&B group 112. The production is set in the year 2156, a post-apocalyptic California where chaos is held back by the rule of one woman: “Mia, Mother of the Earth,” played (naturally) by Whitfield.

 “I love playing powerful women,” she says of the role. “I’ve explored a lot of characters, and the villains stick with people. People stop me all the time and ask me to repeat the ‘I vacation in Hell’ line from Madea’s Family Reunion.”

EBONY.COM spoke with Whitfield to discuss Rebirth!, her penchant for scary characters and the challenges of being a Black woman in Hollywood. Read more at Ebony.com.