蜜柚直播

Yep, that鈥檚 right.

Vicki Lawrence might have top billing, but Thelma Harper 鈥� Mama to her legions of fans and knucklehead family members 鈥� is the headliner.

From the moment she conceived the show and launched it in 2001, Lawrence knew better than to upstage the cranky old-lady character she created 50 years ago on 鈥淭he Carol Burnett Show.鈥�

鈥淪ometimes I think I could probably fall off the face of the earth and people wouldn鈥檛 care as long as Mama is still around,鈥� Lawrence said during a phone call from her California home a few days before Christmas.

Lawrence is bringing Mama back to 蜜柚直播 for the first time in 20 years for a show at Fox 蜜柚直播 Theatre on Saturday, Jan. 11.

The show opens with Lawrence doing a few jokes and singing a medley of her hits (OK, she had only one, 鈥淭he Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia鈥�) and telling stories about her improbable life in Hollywood.

She was just 18 when Carol Burnett cast her to be part of her eponymous TV variety show. She stayed on through its nearly 11-year run on CBS from 1967-78, with castmates Burnett, Tim Conway and Harvey Korman.

The character of Thelma Harper, aka Mama, was part of 鈥淭he Family鈥� comedy sketch about Thelma Harper and her five children, including the troubled Eunice Higgins and her husband Ed.

The Mama character was actually written for Burnett, but 鈥渨hen she read the script, she said, 鈥楳ama is not the character that speaks to me. Eunice is,鈥欌�� Lawrence said.

Perplexed, the writers turned to the producer and suggested Lawrence for the role.

鈥淎t that time, I had played many crazy old ladies on the show, you know, because it was Carol鈥檚 show,鈥� recalled Lawrence, who was 24 when she started playing the elderly character. 鈥淪he was always the ing茅nue, I was always the crazy old lady. If she was Cinderella, I was the witch. So at the time, it was just another old lady for me to play.鈥�

Burnett threw another wrench into the writers鈥� plans when she proposed the family was Southern, even though they were based in the fictional town of Raytown, Kansas, straddling the Missouri state line. The writers and producers were concerned that doing the skit with Southern accents would anger half of the country.

But instead of angering audiences, the skit, meant to be a one-time deal, got so much positive feedback that it and the characters became a signature of the show.

Lawrence said 鈥淭he Family鈥� characters became Burnett鈥檚 favorite on the show. When 鈥淭he Carol Burnett鈥� show ended in 1978, they developed a TV movie 鈥淓unice鈥� in 1982; Lawrence鈥檚 sitcom 鈥淢ama鈥檚 Family鈥� followed in 1983 and ran through 1990.

Thanks to the magic of syndication, two generations of viewers have since become fans of the snarky old gal.

鈥淭hey love her. They love her like she鈥檚 not me, like she鈥檚 another person and she鈥檚 just a rock star,鈥� Lawrence said. 鈥淭hey love everything she has to say. And the audiences are incredible.鈥�

Lawrence recalled one of her first two-woman shows at a casino in New Orleans not long after Katrina.

鈥淚 turned through one of the aisles, and there was this whole row of young, adorable guys. And I said, really? And they said, 鈥極h, my God, we wouldn鈥檛 have gotten through without Mama,鈥欌�� she said. 鈥淭hey sort of learned me backwards. ... They were 鈥楳ama鈥檚 Family鈥� fans, but they would listen to my half of the show and, you know, just get all the backstory and where I came from. Then they鈥檇 come back to the show and say, 鈥榊ou were really hot when you were young.鈥� It was sort of like a weird 鈥楤ack to the Future鈥� thing when the young people show up.鈥�

After Lawrence鈥檚 opening, when she goes backstage to transform into Mama, the audience sees outtakes of the TV show before Mama reemerges.

But Mama in 2025 won鈥檛 be re-litigating all her rants from 50 years ago. Lawrence and her writing partner were careful to avoid making the live show a retrospective.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 want it to be like the Mama that everybody knows for sure from that show. I want her to be pushed into the new century,鈥� she explained. 鈥淚 want her (to be) the one that I try to keep more topical, you know, so that she can comment on all the crazy stuff that鈥檚 going on in the world, and for God鈥檚 sakes, it just keeps getting crazy.鈥�

Lawrence said Mama resonates with today鈥檚 audiences because she represents a simpler time, when social media and cell phones and the internet didn鈥檛 exist.

鈥淚t just takes you away from real life a little bit,鈥� she said.

鈥淰icki Lawrence & Mama: A Two Woman Show鈥� begins at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Fox 蜜柚直播 Theatre, 17 W. Congress St. Tickets are $20-$72.50 through .