Beverly D’Angelo Pays Tribute to Patsy Cline’s ‘Life and Legacy’ in Concert: ‘An Homage’

Actress Beverly D’Angelo is delighted to be one of the performers who are part of the PBS tribute for country singer Patsy Cline. The versatile actress portrayed Patsy in the movie Coal Miner’s Daughter and has always felt a strong connection to her.

“I love that this star-studded concert, Patsy Cline: Walkin’ After Midnight, celebrates her life and legacy,” she exclusively told Closer Weekly.

The Great Performances special, which also features singers like Wynonna Judd, Pat Benatar and Kristin Chenoweth, was taped at Patsy’s home stage, Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium.

Beverly talked to Closer about her close connection with Patsy’s music.

“When I started singing, I sang with the legendary Ronnie Hawkins, who was a rockabilly before they came up with that name, in Canada. And he said, ‘You know, Bev, you should check out the Patsy Cline songbook.’ So I knew about those songs and sang them, way before I played Patsy Cline. I came to that movie as a singer more than an actor. I’d just started acting. I think it’s like the third movie I did. I sang my way into it. And so I would say that for me, it was more like an homage. It wasn’t about trying to sound exactly like her. It was more to find like the similar resonances, and it was an actor’s journey for a singer.”

Beverly has also been busy making feature films, like the dark comedy The Trainer, which premiered at the Rome Film Festival. “This was a personal reunion with Tony Kaye, who directed me in American History X — it was wonderful to be a part of it.”

Recently, she was also in No Address, a dramatic film centered on the lives of six people who have fallen into homelessness. “It is our hope that we can bring insight and much-needed attention to the homeless crisis we face as a nation today.”

And while she doesn’t have a bucket list per se, Beverly has lots more she wants to accomplish!

“I don’t think in terms of ‘what I want to do before I die.’ I look for fulfillment of each moment and strive to be fully present. Sometimes it’s really hard to keep from looking back … or forward … but that’s my goal, staying present in the moment.”