Vegas Tina Turner artist returns to character

Tina Turner is back on the charts, and Larry Edwards is back in our hearts.

Turner has collaborated with star DJ Kygo for Friday’s re-release of the 1984 hit “What’s Love Got to Do With It.” Edwards has seized the moment to return to his Turner persona, famous in his days in “Evening at La Cage” at the Riviera and Frank Marino’s “Divas Las Vegas” at Linq Hotel.

He’s been posting a series of photos and videos in his “Quaran-Tina” character. Turner, at 80, is coming out of retirement for this one-off collab with Kygo. The whole experience is a strut down Memory Lane.

“My first Tina Turner concert was in Houston in 1982 at the Windmill Theater, and I’ve been taken aback with her performances ever since,” Edwards says. “She is my icon.”

Though Turner has effectively retired and lives in Switzerland, Edwards is still keeping her image onstage. He still busts out the character at Piranha nightclub. He’s still receiving residual checks for his role as Turner in “Miss Congeniality 2.”

Edwards debuted his character at Bally’s in Atlantic City in 1984. He transferred the act to “La Cage” two years later. He’s also performed as Beyonce in a “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)” number, but Turner is his first stage portrayal.

Edwards met Turner after a taping of “The Oprah Winfrey Show” in Chicago in the mid-2000s. “I thanked her for allowing me to do the portrayal of her. She was just so wonderful.”

Edwards was also in the biopic “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” in the scene where Turner (played by Angela Bassett) has just split with Ike and is performing “Disco Inferno.”

“You can see me in the front row,” Edwards says, “and I’m dressed as Tina.”

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His PodKats! podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.