By Megan Rosenfeld
"Hey kids, a
little slower on 'better day,' " shouted Valerie Landsburg, who plays
Doris on the television show "Fame." "Think of slowing down on
make -- we'll make a better day . . . let's run that last tag one more
time."
Arrayed before her
yesterday in Constitution Hall were 96 aspiring talents, dressed in
artistically ragged sweat pants and denims, from the Duke Ellington School of
the Arts, Washington's counterpart to the performing arts school that is the
setting for "Fame." The TV show, like the movie that inspired it, is
in part a show business fantasy that speaks to teen-agers' desire to be stars.
So what was going on
here?
It seems that some
cast members of "Fame" have a Bible study group and wanted to do
something to help the famine victims in Ethiopia. So they contacted a Christian
relief organization called World Vision, which organized a concert last night
in Constitution Hall. By late afternoon, more than 2,300 of the hall's 3,746
seats had been sold, and there was a line at the box office.
The kids from Duke
Ellington were invited to participate in the concert, aimed partly at raising
money and partly at enlisting volunteers for a 40-hour fast at the end of this
month. A spokesman for World Vision said the charity hopes to raise $1 million
for relief efforts through the fast.
"It's like
4,000 people a day dying," said Carlo Imperato, 21, of the Bronx, who
plays Danny on the show. "That could wipe out the U.S. That's worse than
the plague."
Imperato, a singer
and actor, is a member of the Bible study group, which meets weekly at his
house. His girlfriend, Leanne Gerrish, a dancer on the show, was the prime
organizer of the benefit, he said. They persuaded other cast members to take
part, including Nia Peeples (who plays Nicole), Gene Anthony Ray (who plays
Leroy) and Landsburg. All were motivated, Imperato said, "by the
catastrophe that's happening."
A skinny boy in
dancers' sweat pants approached tentatively.
"Hi," he
said boldly. "I'm Terrence."
"Hey,"
said Imperato. "I'm Carlo."
Terrence scampered
off. The Duke Ellington kids reacted to the entry of the "Fame" kids
with studied cool. The show isn't realistic, several said, but they still
wouldn't mind being on television.
"Is Debbie
Allen here? That's the one I wanted to see," said Rhoda Lawrence, 16, a
voice major at Duke Ellington.
No, Debbie Allen,
the former Washingtonian (and teacher at Duke Ellington's predecessor, Workshop
for Careers in the Arts) was not there. Allen, who plays a dance teacher on
"Fame," is making a movie with Richard Pryor.
"Move or you'll
all be expelled," growled Ken Swofford, who plays Principal Morloch on
"Fame," as he elbowed his way to the stage through a crowd of
students. They giggled gleefully as they recognized him. Just like on TV.
"They're getting
paid to pretend they are us," said Lawrence, an aspiring singer.
World Vision
operates 10 feeding centers and 35 development projects in Ethiopia, said
spokesman Brian Bird. "We feed 67,000 people a day directly and 150,000
indirectly," he added. "Plus we have two aircraft that make seven
flights a day each to take food upcountry."
The fasting project,
called "Get Hungry," has already signed on 21,000 fasters, he said,
and it hopes for 35,000 by April 26. Participants will earn money for famine
relief by signing up sponsors for each hour of their fast.
"We have a very
sophisticated machinery set up for tracking the success of the project,"
Bird said. "It will all be on a computer. If it's a success in this area
we'll try it elsewhere."
Meanwhile, the gang
on stage was rehearsing the finale, "We Are the World," the hit song
that has become the pop music industry's anthem for the Ethiopian famine
victims. Peeples was singing a verse into a microphone -- and, at the moment,
singing flat. "Oh dear," said one onlooker.
"We need more
people singing 'There's a choice we're making,' " Peeples said to the
assembled performers.
"One more
time," said Landsburg, helping to conduct the choir. "Then all you
Ellington kids go and eat dinner."
.webp)
No comments:
Post a Comment