When You're Good to Chicago's Terri White, She Shares Her Dressing Room Treasures

As Matron Mama Morton, Terri White is the “keeper of the keys” to Chicago’s razzle-dazzle jailhouse.White recently arrived at the Ambassador Theatre after a fairytale year that included a show-stopping performance in Finian's Rainbow. Before that, the powerhouse singer had endured a period of homelessness, but she's back where she belongs, front and center on Broadway. Before a recent performance of Chicago, White invited Broadway.com to tour her dressing room. Thankfully it’s much more accommodating than a jail cell! Take a look.

Photo by Jenny Anderson for Broadway.com


"These are my tweezers. For all the young ladies out there, [one thing] mothers never tell you is that as you get older, you get these little hairs on your chin that you can’t find, so you have to put on glasses. The lord is cruel. I truly need these. I kind of panic if I can’t find them each day."


"This is a piece by artist William H. Welch, an impressionist from Key West, which is where I live. I keep that because it’s special to my heart."


"This is a picture of my wife [Donna Barnett] and I that appeared in The New York Times. It was taken in my dressing room during the run of Finian’s Rainbow."


"This is my Drama Desk Award nomination for Finian’s Rainbow for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical. It was my first award ever for performing on Broadway. It’s an accomplishment, since I’ve been in this business for many decades. I'm quite proud of it."


'This is a picture of my mom when she was six years old, around the turn of the century. I just thought it was a very serene picture of her, sitting still."