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That’s a Read!

Theresa Caputo heads to Houston for a night of spiritual connection and healing.

Theresa Caputo (Photo by Richard Marchisotto)

From Long Island to the Bayou City, Theresa Caputo is bringing her gift of communicating with the spiritual world to Houston’s Wortham Center for a one-night-only experience of healing, connection, and fun. The author and television personality, who became a household name thanks to her TLC reality show The Long Island Medium, spoke with OutSmart about what audiences can expect on May 19 at Theresa Caputo Live! The Experience.  

“I have no plan,” she says with a laugh as she begins to describe what her shows entail. “The only plan is that I’m going to have my hair and my makeup done, and I’m going to put on a great dress and fabulous shoes. That’s the only plan. I come out on the stage and give a quick speech on how I read and connect with the souls of the departed. Once I start sensing and feeling Spirit, I allow the souls to guide me around the theater.” 

Caputo explains how she does what she does in a nutshell by saying, “I have a guideline with Spirit—they have to show me three things: First, they will make me feel a bond or relationship that they shared with the person. Then they will physically bring me through the departure, making me feel what they felt as they died. Then they will show me the sign and the symbol of the burden and/or guilt that that person is holding on to that is not giving them the ability to heal. 

“That’s why I do the work that I do,” she says passionately. “It’s about healing. It’s not about believing in mediums—I want people to believe in themselves. I want people to believe in an afterlife, and to know that the things that they sense and feel are real. Things that remind them of their loved ones [can show us] their loved ones’ souls. I say they’re little hellos from heaven, reminding us that they are with us at that exact moment.” 

The theaters she occupies for a few hours each night play a big part in the special experience this Long Island medium creates. “There is something special about being in that theater. It’s a feeling that you really can’t describe,” she says. “It’s like you just feel this overwhelming sense of peace and comfort.” 

This tour is an extension of her spiritual calling, and she couldn’t be more grateful. “I don’t look at it as work,” she says. “I consider it an honor and a privilege to do this type of ‘work.’ And what I mean by work would be ‘God’s work.’ The fact that people trust me with the souls of their loved ones is so important to me.”

Caputo’s tours offer something far beyond her usual, more intimate, readings with clients. She credits the very nature of a large venue, and the many souls that enter it, with creating a uniquely empathetic community. “The thing that I love about events in theaters with such a large capacity is how Spirit shows a different side. It is a lot of sadness and sorrow, because everyone in that theater walks in with hopes of hearing from their loved one that has died. What I assume, however, is that there’s also a lot of common things that they might have me bring up and talk about. So, I validate all of these messages [from a loved one by bringing up] something completely unique to the person that Spirit has me speaking to.” 

Caputo explains how Spirit will bring up memories with laughter, harkening back to happier times, or memories of things that have occurred since their passing. “They even bring up conversations that we’ve had with people that we think they wouldn’t know about. The thing that I love the most is that I communicate with their personality—the way that they were before they got sick, or before tragedy took their life.” 

Her Houston appearance will offer these types of dynamic communal experiences. With a camera following her as she makes her way about the venue, broadcasting her every move on screens for all in attendance to see, Caputo goes where Spirit leads her. “To hear thousands of people laugh at one time over something, there’s just something I can’t describe about it. It’s truly special, because everyone’s crying in one moment and then they’re laughing the next.”

Caputo isn’t on a mission to convert or convince skeptics. She is simply using her gift to offer others a bridge to healing. “Spirit gives us permission to be happy [and] enjoy life. Enjoying life doesn’t mean we’re not thinking about [our loved ones who have passed on]. It just means that we’re including them in a different way, and knowing that they’re experiencing life through our eyes.” 

Caputo is especially gratified when she can help someone move beyond their grief to experience that joy. “[At first], you can feel the grief and the sadness, [but then you will also] watch someone smile and laugh with real happiness as they wipe away those tears. It really is something truly special to witness and to be a part of.”

While reflecting on past readings for her LGBTQ clients, Caputo acknowledges her ability to relate to them, due in part to public opinions and perceptions about her gift. “I think I’m able to connect with people from the LGBT community because I understand that feeling of not feeling ‘normal’ and feeling different. I would always say, ‘Who decided what normal is, anyway?’ To me, talking to dead people is normal!” she says with laughter. “I’m not going to let someone’s negativity affect who God intended me to be. When I embraced my gift is when I truly felt complete.

“[I’ve had] so many readings with people over the years where loved ones did not know that they were gay. For their loved ones to come through and say, ‘I am proud of the person that you have become’—and to be so specific on those details—is really special.” 

Caputo shares the story of a longtime client that she has known for decades. “I had a client, oh my God, he’s been a client of mine, probably 20 years. When he was younger, he would come for a reading and his deceased grandfather would say to him, ‘You’re gonna be married, you’re gonna have children.’ One day the client stopped, looked at me, and he goes, ‘Theresa, I’m a gay man. How is this gonna happen?’ We still laugh about that moment, and to this day he’s still married and he has three beautiful children. That’s such an example of what we think is impossible being possible. Nothing is impossible, right? We have to have that safety and that courage to embrace who God intended us to be. One of the valuable lessons that I learned is that we have to love, honor, and respect ourselves more than anything in this life. If we can’t do that, then we’ve got a lot of work to do. When you’re able to do that, you can accomplish anything.”

Caputo is grateful for her fanbase who supports what she does, and she’s eager to meet her Houston audience. Although not everyone who enters the theater will experience a one-on-one reading, this medium with the unforgettably big hair, and even bigger heart of gold, explains that everyone will leave with memories and lessons about life, love, and the power of connection. 

“People will say, ‘I had no idea what to expect when I went to the show. I personally didn’t get read, but what I witnessed was life changing.’ Some people will even go on to say, ‘I realized that the people that received the messages truly needed to hear from their loved ones more than I did.’ That validates how powerful the experiences are, and how we still have such empathy for people.”

Follow Theresa Caputo at theresacaputo.com. Tickets for her May 19 appearance (starting at $55) can be purchased at theresacaputo.com/2023/02/houston-tx-7.

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Zach McKenzie

Zachary McKenzie is a marketing professional and freelance writer in Houston, TX. He received his bachelor's degree from The University of Texas at Austin in 2014 and has lived in Houston since. Zachary is a volunteer with Big Brothers Big Sisters and enjoys spending his free time with friends, exploring the richness and diversity of Houston.
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