Security Measures Taken After COLOR PURPLE's Barrino Receives Threatening Mail
TMZ is reporting that singer and actress Fantasia Barrino, currently appearing in 'The Color Purple' at The Pantages Theatre is Los Angeles, is under a self-imposed lockdown after receiving a threatening fan letter containing racial slurs.
Barrino's manager spoke with TMZ and confirmed that the fan letter, which claims to be from a security guard who worked for FOX studios while Barrino was appearing on American Idol, included the n-word along with a line that read, "go back where you came from and die."
The LAPD has been contacted and security measures at the theatre are being taken, including a screening of any items that are addressed to Barrino.
For her part, Barrino told TMZ, "I will not be defeated by one isolated person's hatred."
Since Barrino's May 2004 victory in "American Idol"'s Third Season, she has released two successful albums, Free Yourself and Fantasia, and has been nominated for awards as diverse as Grammy Awards, American Music Awards, Vibe Awards, BET Awards, NAACP Image Awards, and many more. She also authored the New York Times best-selling autobiography Life Is Not A Fairy Tale and starred in The Fantasia Barrino Story: Life is Not a Fairytale, a Lifetime original movie adaptation of her memoir, in August 2006. The biopic became Lifetime's Second Most Watched Movie, garnering 2007 NAACP Image Award Nominations for Outstanding Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special and Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special.
THE COLOR PURPLE continues through Sunday, February 28 at The Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles. Tickets for THE COLOR PURPLE are available for purchase online at www.BroadwayLA.org or by phone at 1-800-982-ARTS (2787). Tickets may also be purchased in person at The Pantages Box Office (opens daily at 10am) and all Ticketmaster ticket outlets.
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