FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, PLEASE

 

 

For more information, contact:

Jenni Benzaquen

Press Director

Geffen Playhouse

(310) 208-6500, ext. 126

jenni@geffenplayhouse.com

 

 

GEFFEN PLAYHOUSE PRESENTS THE WEST COAST PREMIERE OF DEBBIE ALLEN’S

“PEARL”

 

SNOW WHITE UPDATE STARS ALLEN, AN AWARD-WINNING ENSEMBLE AND 35 LOS ANGELES CHILDREN

 

NOVEMBER 12 - DECEMBER 29, 2002

 

LOS ANGELES, CA – October 23, 2002 – Geffen Producing Director Gil Cates proudly announces the second production of Geffen Playhouse’s 2002-2003 season, the West Coast premiere of Debbie Allen’s Pearl.   Debbie Allen, last seen at the Geffen in Harriet’s Return, has written and will direct and choreograph a new contemporary adaptation of the Brothers Grimm’s tale Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.  Music for Pearl is composed by Grammy Award-winner James Ingram, Diane Louie and Allen.  Pearl runs from November 12 through December 29, 2002, with an official press opening on Wednesday, November 20, 2002.

 

This charming song and dance adventure introduces Pearl (Vivian Nixon), whose beautiful singing voice outshines that of The Queen (Allen), her fading pop star stepmother.   Abandoned in a forest by The Queen’s bodyguard, Q (Buddy Lewis), Pearl is rescued by the Seven Dwowns, the tumbling and dancing stars of the Sentury Sircus.   Along the way, Pearl meets Charm (Rasta Thomas), the star of the Sentury Sircus.  (Full biographies for the cast and creative team follow at the end of this release.)

 

Gil Cates comments, “Debbie Allen is an artist of great vision.  With Debbie’s help, the Geffen is fulfilling our educational outreach mission by updating a timeless fairy tale and making it accessible for a new generation of theatergoers.  Pearl’s appeal, however, is not limited to children and is sure to delight adults of all ages. ”

                                                                                                                       

Debbie Allen is an actress, director, producer, choreographer, singer, dancer and author.  Her film work includes Amistad, Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life is Calling and Milos Forman’s Ragtime.  She appeared in the movie Fame and received two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe for her work on television’s Fame.  On Broadway, Ms. Allen appeared in Purlie, Raisin, a musical adaptation of Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, the 1986 production of Sweet Charity (Tony Award nomination) and the 1980 production of West Side Story (Tony Award nomination).  Ms. Allen is the founder and Artistic Director of the Debbie Allen Dance Academy (DADA) in Culver City.

 

Appearing in the role of Pearl is Vivian Nixon, who originated the role at the Kennedy Center.  Ms. Nixon has danced with Kirov Ballet and is a graduate of DADA.  Appearing as Charm, Pearl’s love interest, is Rasta Thomas, who has danced with Joffrey Ballet, Hartford Ballet and National Ballet of China.  Playing The Queen’s sidekicks are Buddy Lewis as Q and Michele Morgan as Virtual Shirley.   Mr. Lewis is an award-winning actor, comedian and writer who has appeared on HBO’s Def Comedy Jam and BET’s Comic View.   Ms. Morgan is a Screen Actor’s Guild Award-winner for her role on E.R. 

 

The Pearl ensemble includes (in alphabetical order): Audra Avery, Tatianna Barber, Tonequasha Benn, Brittany Blossom, Ashley Caldwell, Paige Collins, Erynn Dickerson, Coral Dolphin, Jazz Domingo, Jade Easley, Ashalee Fann, Myasia Fox, Amanda Franzese, Kylie Jefferson, Edric Leggett, Jennifer Locke, Melissa Matthews, Perris McCracken, Jonathan McGill, Jamil Morgan, Brandon O’Neal, Taylour Paige, Noah Robbins, Sascha Shapiro, Hannah Schneider, Sean Smith, Elizabeth Snyder, Tiernan Tunnicliff, Dion Watson, Marcel Wildy, Joey Williams, Samarah Williams and Evan Wilson. 

 

The Pearl creative team includes Ray Klausen (Scenic Consultant), Timm Burrow (Costume Design), William H. Grant III (Lighting Design), Diane Louie (Musical Direction/Arrangements/Sound Design) and David Blackwell (Production Stage Manager).

 

Pearl plays at Geffen Playhouse, located at 10886 Le Conte Avenue in Westwood.  Tickets can be purchased directly at the Geffen box office, by calling the box office at 310-208-5454 or through the Geffen’s website at www.geffenplayhouse.com. Ticket prices range from $28 to $46.  As a special offer, ticket prices for children 18 and under are $10.  Discounts are also available for groups of fifteen or more.  The group sales number is (661) 250-7424.  

 

The performance schedule is Tues.-Thurs. at 7:30 p.m.; Friday at 8:00 p.m.; Sat. at 4:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.; and Sunday at 2:00 and 7:00 p.m.  Please note: There will be no performances on Thanksgiving Day, Thurs., November 28 and Sunday, December 8.  There are added matinee performances on Wed., November 27 and Wed., December 4 at 2 p.m. 

 

Pearl was commissioned by the Education Department of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, D.C.  Geffen Playhouse is headed by Producing Director Gilbert Cates, Artistic Director Randall Arney and Managing Director Stephen Eich.

 

PEARL BIOGRAPHIES

 

DEBBIE ALLEN (WRITER/DIRECTOR/CHOREOGRAPHER/THE QUEEN) Ms. Allen’s career has touched nearly every facet of the entertainment industry.  Her Broadway career as a dancer, singer and actress began in the chorus of Purlie.  She next appeared in Raisin in the Sun, then in the 1980 production of West Side Story, for which she won a Drama Desk Award as well as her first Tony Award nomination.  Ms. Allen received another Tony Award nomination in 1986 for her role in Bob Fosse’s Sweet Charity.  Her choreography career soared in 1980 with the hit television series Fame.  In 1988, she went behind the scenes to choreograph the new American musical Carrie with the Royal Shakespeare Company.  She holds the distinction of having choreographed the Academy Awards for five consecutive years and nine times.  Ms. Allen collaborated with Arturo Sandoval to create her first ballet at the Kennedy Center, Pepito’s Story, and returned with James Ingram to create Brothers of the Knight, which is now her critically acclaimed first children’s book.  In the fall of 1999, she teamed up with Sandoval and Ingram to create Soul Possessed, a dance drama, at the Eisenhower Theater at the Kennedy Center.  Ms. Allen received international recognition as producer of Steven Spielberg’s Amistad.  As an actress, she received three Emmy Award nominations and one Golden Globe for her portrayal of Lydia Grant in Fame.  As a choreographer, she received three Emmy Awards, two for Fame and one for Motown 30.   In 2001, she portrayed Harriet Tubman in Harriet’s Return at Geffen Playhouse.  Ms. Allen’s many honors include Essence Awards in 1992 and 1995, the first Lena Horne Award for Career Achievement at the Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards, and two honorary doctorates, one from the North Carolina School of the Arts and the other from her alma mater, Howard University.  Ms. Allen is the founder and Artistic Director of the Debbie Allen Dance Academy in Los Angeles. 

 

JAMES INGRAM (COMPOSER), one of contemporary music’s premiere vocalists, is also a producer, arranger, songwriter and musician.  He is a three-time Grammy Award-winner and has been nominated for 17 Grammy Awards and two Academy Awards.  Mr. Ingram was featured on several songs for Quincy Jones’ 1981 multi-platinum album The Dude, which showcased his talents on “Just Once” and “One Hundred Ways.”  These two songs, both top ten hits, garnered Mr. Ingram his first Grammy Award for Best R&B male Vocal Performance in 1981, making him the first individual to win a Grammy without having released a solo album.  His work with Quincy Jones includes “We Are the World,” co-writing “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing),” one of the signature tunes on Michael Jackson’s historic 1982 Thriller album, which sold more than 50 million copies.  That same year, Mr. Ingram signed with Jones’ Qwest Records and teamed up with label mate Patti Austin to record “Baby, Come to Me,” a song that went on to become a number one hit.  The duo repeated their success with “How Do You Keep the Music Playing?” which was featured in the movie Best Friends and garnered both Oscar and Grammy nominations.  Released in 1983, Mr. Ingram’s debut album, It’s Your Night, sold 850,000 copies and featured a collaboration with Michael McDonald on “Yah Mo Be There,” which became a top 20 pop hit, a top five R&B hit, and earned him his second Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance for a Group or Duo in 1984.  Mr. Ingram sang “Somewhere Out There,” with Linda Ronstandt, for Steven Spielberg’s animated film An American Tale.  He also worked with Ms. Allen on Brothers of the Knight, The Legend and A Soul Possessed.

 

DIANE LOUIE (COMPOSER/MUSICAL DIRECTION/ARRANGEMENTS/SOUND DESIGN) She has worked with some of the most recognized names in the recording industry including  Roberta Flack, Stevie Wonder, Tony Bennett, Lionel Hampton, Nancy Wilson, Dianne Reeves, Backstreet Boys, Placido Domingo, Michael McDonald, CeCe Winans and Vanessa Williams.  In over twenty years as a musical director, Diane Louie has helmed orchestras worldwide, including the London Symphony, the Boston Symphony, the San Francisco Symphony and the Royal Philharmonic.  She has written songs and award-winning special material for the Academy Awards, Emmys, Grammys, Image Awards, Miss America, HBO's Happily Ever After, The Cosby Show, Friends, and today's most popular recording artists.  In memory of the victims of 9/11, "Virtus Populi" premiered in Boston with the Boston Symphony, and a special "America the Beautiful" featured Lionel Richie and Mary J. Blige.   In Los Angeles, Diane Louie is director of Founders Academy which provides educational opportunities to the older children of families affected by substance abuse.

 

MATTHEW DICKENS (RINGMASTER/DR. DREWDY) performed on Broadway in the original company of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Boulevard, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Glenn Close, also appearing in the Los Angeles production.  Other Broadway credits include the role of Chris (the only African American to ever play the role) and John in Miss Saigon, Smokey Joe’s Café, Dreamgirls, and Stephen King’s Carrie, choreographed by Debbie Allen.  He also performed the role of John in the Dutch production of Miss Saigon in Holland.  Currently, he is director/choreographer for the Royal Dutch Airforce Orchestra.  For European television, he choreographed Euro 2000, the National Wedding Event for the Prince and future King of the Netherlands, and several music videos.  As guest artist, he has appeared on television in The West Wing, Quantum Leap, A Different World, Fame, Disney’s television movie Polly, Polly One ‘Mo Time, the 63rd Annual Academy Awards and the Emmy Awards. 

 

BUDDY LEWIS (Q) is a stand-up comedian, actor and writer. Mr. Lewis currently works behind the scenes as creative consultant on BET’s new comedy, Holla, where he can also be seen on screen as Holla Man. He has appeared on both BET’s Comic View and HBO’s Def Comedy Jam, working as comedy consultant for the latter for three years.  In the summer of 2002, he was featured performer in Shelly Garrett’s play Doing the Right Thing With the Wrong Man.  In 2001, he appeared in the national tour of David E. Talbert’s hit musical, The Fabric of a Man.  He appeared as the bartender in Woo, starring Jada Pinkett and Tommy Davidson. Buddy was also featured in the film Berverlyhood, in the rapper Mack 10’s debut film Thicker Than Water and in the independently released film Reitiring Tatiana.  In 2000, he costarred with the recording group IMX in the USA Network’s House Party 4- Down to the Last Minute and appeared in The Brothers. Buddy has made several guest appearances on a variety of television programs including Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Sister Sister, In the House, Sparks and Martin and most recently co- starred on an episode of the Jamie Foxx Show. He was a writer on the late night talk show pilots for comedians Bill Bellamy and Teddy Carpenter and was a staff writer for the Def Jam Prime Time Comedy Special, Vibe, and The Magic Hour.

 

MICHELE MORGAN (VIRTUAL SHIRLEY) is a Screen Actors’ Guild Award-winner for her recurring role as Allison Beaumont on E.R.  She appeared with Warren Beatty and Halle Berry in Bulworth.  Michele is a favorite among children as the voice of Juicy on the Fox animated series The P.J.’s and is also the voice of Sharon on the WB animated series Static Shock. 

 

VIVIAN NIXON (PEARL), 18 years old, originated the role of Pearl at the Kennedy Center where she also appeared in Brothers of the Night, Dreams and Soul Possessed.  A four-year veteran of the Academy Awards, Ms. Nixon studied with the Kirov Academy in Washington, D.C., for three years and is a recent graduate of DADA.  She is a freshman at Fordham University where she trains with Alvin Ailey.  Ms. Nixon is the daughter of Debbie Allen and Norman Nixon.

 

RASTA THOMAS (CHARM) was a Principal Dancer with the Hartford Ballet in 1997.  His guest credits include the Russian Imperial Ballet, National Ballet of China, Victor Ullate Ballet of Spain, Inoue Ballet of Japan, Universal Ballet of Korea, Joffrey Ballet, Tulsa Ballet, Philandanco.  In 2001, Mr. Thomas was the first American to become a member of the Kirov Ballet of St. Petersburg, Russia.  Television credits included featured solo during the 1999 Academy Awards and the Spring 2000 international ad campaign for The Gap.  Mr. Thomas recently appeared as Timmy in Patrick Swayze’s Without a Word. 

 

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