Shania Twain's Country Tear-Jerker
Mark A. Perigard - Boston Herald
May 09, 2011
Shania Twain is not ready for the spotlight.
The five-time Grammy winner and country artist known for such hits as "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!" and "You're Still the One" watched her personal life implode after discovering her husband, music producer Mutt Lange, was having an affair with her personal assistant/best friend. The two divorced, Lange married the other woman, and Twain, in January, married the ex-bestie's ex-husband.
Confused by all that?
So is Twain.
Her one-hour unscripted series "Why Not? With Shania Twain" rings of a last-ditch effort to avoid counseling.
Since her first marriage collapsed, Twain, who once performed in front of thousands, has found it impossible to sing and suffers from debilitating stage fright.
"I really lost my sense of trust and compassion altogether. That's all gone, that's all dead. I crashed down and became what I consider an emotional mess," she tells the camera.
As part of her "recovery tour," Twain revisits key locations in her past -- she grew up in abject poverty in Canada -- in a bus so big it should have its own zip code. The series mixes vintage performance clips with visits to ordinary folks who have suffered losses similar to Twain. In the opener, she checks in with siblings who also lost their parents at a young age. Next week, she meets with a woman whose husband left her for her best friend. At times, the camera captures Twain being filmed in turn by her new husband, whose mission -- or obsession -- appears to be to document her every second.
Twain, who also serves as executive producer, readily admits she is a control freak. She frets on camera about how the show will portray her. "I don't want the public to think I'm a sap," she says.
The title for her series, the May 15 episode reveals, was inspired by one of her favorite self-help authors. When she meets for the first time with the psychiatrist, he issues her a reality sound check about how she still idolizes her ex and demonizes the other woman. He gently encourages her to consider therapy.
Every time someone suggests counseling, Twain erupts into nervous cackling.
"Can't we just do some things on our own? Does everybody need a therapist?"
Twain hopes her show will help others who have been wronged. She has the melody down, but she hasn't found the words.
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