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Event
Chemo Barbie: My Lady Bits' Journey Through Breast Cancer
Chemo Barbie earns a Fringe Encore Award!
Just three months removed from treatment, artist Heather Keller shares the remarkable, heartbreaking and even comical story of her journey through breast cancer in a solo show.
LOS ANGELES In 2016, Heather Kellers world was rocked by a breast cancer diagnosis. Overnight, she went from being a healthy, vegan runner to a cancer patient and since then her life has been and continues to be an inspiring journey of growth filled with love, friendships, disappointments, betrayals and yes, even some humor.
Keller shares this experience in her solo show Chemo Barbie: My Lady Bits Journey Through Breast Cancer, which made its world premiere at Asylum @Studio C in June as part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival and now returns for One Night Only on July 8 after earning an Encore Award.
Chemo Barbie is an inspiring story told with painful honesty, comedic charm and tear-jerking dignity that takes you into the mind of a cancer patient from diagnosis to treatment. Keller shows what a patient goes through from doctor meetings, testing, treatments and peoples reactions around them. It shows the strength and support that develops with some friends and family while others shy away or leave altogether. Crafted from Heathers hand written journals, videos, texts, emails, storytelling and an online chronicling of her experience, Chemo Barbie is a show spoken and performed from the heart that tells the gritty, funny, heartbreaking and uplifting journey of a young woman conquering cancer while living life as normal as possible.
When I was diagnosed, I had insane decisions to make, difficult things to chose, Keller said. I survived and I'm trying to do something positive from a negative. I've had many people come up to me after performing pieces from this show and they feel connection to the story whether it's cancer or another tragedy that hit their family.
Offering perspective and inspiring others is ultimately Kellers goal with the show. The idea for a solo show came from the journals she kept during her treatment and a private online journal she shared with family and friends. Keller also recorded video of certain key moments in the process and posted it on the YouTube channel Keep Abreast with Heather.
A sketch writer for UCB and the Groundlings as well as an accomplished actress, Keller later performed a couple monologues from her experience at WeSpark Cancer Support Center, as well as other places. Soon, others were asking to hear more of her experience. Working with her director Jessica Lynn Johnson, Keller started to experience a catharsis in putting a show together based on her experience and a joy in the knowledge that it could help others.
Im only three months removed from treatment and my chemo port was removed on February 21, Keller said. Ive been cancer free ever since. Not everyone can live to tell about their journey. Its an honor to do this.
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LocationSoloFest 2018 Whitefire Theatre (View)
13500 Ventura Blvd
Sherman Oaks, CA 91423
United States
Categories
| Minimum Age: 16 |
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Wheelchair Accessible: Yes! |
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