Dorothy Bishop
Encyclopedia
Dorothy Bishop is a variety entertainer, singer and comedienne from New York City
who is best known for her musical parodies of Sarah Palin
. She was born in Atlanta, U.S.
, and graduated from the Yale School of Music
.
Her Off-Broadway credits include "The Sarah Palin Musical Spectacular" and "The Sarah Palin Election Day Spectacular" at the Laurie Beechman Theater in New York City. Bishop is also known for her video parodies including "Going Rogue" and "The Ballad of Sarah Palin" with Lady Bunny
.
She also is known for her cheeky classical crossover show "Viva la Diva," in which she celebrates the world's most beloved divas, from opera to pop. The 2008 debut of "Viva la Diva" at New York's Zipper Theater won a positive review from Gay City News
: "One could almost imagine Bishop as the artistic love child of Eleanor Steber
and Bette Midler
conceived at the Continental Baths
sometime between either diva's appearance there in the early '70s.... Vocally, the 'poperatic' soprano is able to sing scat, belt, and go from chesty growling to high coloratura, jumping registers and genres with the facility of the late Evel Knievel
vaulting a pyre of burning cars."
Bishop has a classical background in opera and toured with Faye Dunaway
in the first Broadway national tour of Terrence McNally
's Tony Award winning play, Master Class
. She has performed in such renowned New York venues as Carnegie Hall
, Joe's Pub
, Zipper Theatre and Town Hall.
Bishop was a nationally televised finalist on the fourth season of America's Got Talent
on NBC
. She was a co-presenter for the hookies with Leslie Jordan
, and has been a guest on the Robin Byrd Show
.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
who is best known for her musical parodies of Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin
Sarah Louise Palin is an American politician, commentator and author. As the Republican Party nominee for Vice President in the 2008 presidential election, she was the first Alaskan on the national ticket of a major party and first Republican woman nominated for the vice-presidency.She was...
. She was born in Atlanta, U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and graduated from the Yale School of Music
Yale School of Music
The Yale School of Music is one of the twelve professional schools at Yale University and one of the premier music conservatories in the world....
.
Her Off-Broadway credits include "The Sarah Palin Musical Spectacular" and "The Sarah Palin Election Day Spectacular" at the Laurie Beechman Theater in New York City. Bishop is also known for her video parodies including "Going Rogue" and "The Ballad of Sarah Palin" with Lady Bunny
Lady Bunny
The Lady Bunny is an American drag queen originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee, who has lived in New York since the 1980s. She is the founder of the annual Wigstock event and is well-known as a nightclub DJ, promoter and celebrity...
.
She also is known for her cheeky classical crossover show "Viva la Diva," in which she celebrates the world's most beloved divas, from opera to pop. The 2008 debut of "Viva la Diva" at New York's Zipper Theater won a positive review from Gay City News
Gay City News
Gay City News is an award-winning, free weekly newspaper based in New York City that focuses on local and national issues relating to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. It was founded in 1994 as Lesbian Gay New York, later LGNY, and was sold to Community Media LLC in 2002,...
: "One could almost imagine Bishop as the artistic love child of Eleanor Steber
Eleanor Steber
Eleanor Steber was an American operatic soprano. Steber is noted as one of the first major opera stars to have achieved the highest success with training and a career based in the United States.-Biography:...
and Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
conceived at the Continental Baths
Continental Baths
In 1968, Steve Ostrow opened the Continental Baths in the basement of the Ansonia Hotel in New York City. Continental Baths was advertised as reminiscent of "the glory of ancient Rome."-Facilities:...
sometime between either diva's appearance there in the early '70s.... Vocally, the 'poperatic' soprano is able to sing scat, belt, and go from chesty growling to high coloratura, jumping registers and genres with the facility of the late Evel Knievel
Evel Knievel
Evel Knievel , born Robert Craig Knievel, was an American daredevil and entertainer. In his career he attempted over 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps between 1965 and 1980, and in 1974, a failed jump across Snake River Canyon in the Skycycle X-2, a steam-powered rocket...
vaulting a pyre of burning cars."
Bishop has a classical background in opera and toured with Faye Dunaway
Faye Dunaway
Faye Dunaway is an American actress.Dunaway won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in Network after receiving previous nominations for the critically acclaimed films Bonnie and Clyde and Chinatown...
in the first Broadway national tour of Terrence McNally
Terrence McNally
Terrence McNally is an American playwright who has received four Tony Awards, an Emmy, two Guggenheim Fellowships, a Rockefeller Grant, the Lucille Lortel Award, the Hull-Warriner Award, and a citation from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He has been a member of the Council of the...
's Tony Award winning play, Master Class
Master Class
Master Class is a play by Terrence McNally, with incidental music by Giuseppe Verdi, Giacomo Puccini, and Vincenzo Bellini.The play originally was staged by the Philadelphia Theatre Company and the Mark Taper Forum. After twelve previews, the Broadway production, directed by Leonard Foglia, opened...
. She has performed in such renowned New York venues as Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
, Joe's Pub
Joe's Pub
Joe's Pub at Public Theater is a nightclub that hosts live performances regularly. The venue, which is a non-profit operation, is located at 425 Lafayette Street near Astor Place in Manhattan, New York City...
, Zipper Theatre and Town Hall.
Bishop was a nationally televised finalist on the fourth season of America's Got Talent
America's Got Talent
America's Got Talent is an American reality television series on the NBC television network, and part of the global British Got Talent franchise. It is a talent show that features singers, dancers, magicians, comedians, and other performers of all ages competing for the advertised top prize of...
on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
. She was a co-presenter for the hookies with Leslie Jordan
Leslie Jordan
Leslie Allen Jordan is an American actor and playwright.- Early life and career :Hailing from Chattanooga, Tennessee, and at a height of 4 ft 11 in , Jordan has made numerous appearances in both film and television...
, and has been a guest on the Robin Byrd Show
Robin Byrd
Robin Byrd is an American former porn actress and the host of The Robin Byrd Show, which has appeared on Leased access cable television in New York City for close to thirty years.-Background:...
.