Thursday, February 25, 1999
Celebrities perform on STAGE to raise money, awareness for
AIDS-related charities
THEATER: Director hopes for day when cure makes show no longer
necessary
By Sandy Yang
Daily Bruin Staff
Even before AIDS had an official name, STAGE (Southland Theatre
Artists Goodwill Event) was putting on celebrity headlining
musicals and raising money for the cause.
Now 15 years later, STAGE is still raising much-needed funds for
several AIDS charities. More and more celebrities lend their
talents to the musical every year, which has earned a collective $3
million dollars. The musical has also achieved recognition as a
celebrated theatrical event of the year. But this is one show whose
long-running status will hopefully be cut short in the near
future.
"I look forward to the time I don’t have to do it anymore," says
David Galligan, director of all 15 STAGE productions. "It would be
nice not to do it for AIDS anymore and move on to something else
who’s needy. It’s been 15 years and I keep waiting for people to
find a cure. But as long as they don’t, I will do my part, and I
think all the theater entertainers will as well."
Since December, Galligan and the cast and crew have prepared
this year’s production, which contains numbers from "Fiddler on the
Roof" and "Damn Yankees" to "The Will Rogers Follies" by Richard
Adler, Jerry Bock and Cy Coleman. More than 30 celebrities will
translate their work on the stage by donning the roles of ’50s
musicals in 30 separate numbers.
The exhaustive list includes Tyne Daly and Sharon Gless of
"Cagney and Lacey" fame, film critic Rex Reed and Dale Kristien,
who plays Christine in "The Phantom of the Opera," among many other
familiar names.
Contributing their musical talents, the packed list of
performers will dance and sing in numbers one after the other with
no introductions, bows or narration. Only their names will appear
above the stage of each number as different performers and
sceneries change.
"It’s always on the move," Galligan says. "The scenery is always
flying in and out, and there’s a hydrolic lift that’s moving in
with the performer. So it never stops until (the end of the
show)."
Like the show itself, Galligan never stops. Even after 15 years,
he has never considered stopping to work with the benefit he helped
start.
In 1984, Galligan, a former journalist, was asked to direct a
musical to raise funds for a disease that was attacking gay men.
Calling up celebrities he knew and had interviewed before, Galligan
was able to pull off an event that would become one of today’s most
celebrated benefits.
Now more than ever, the cause is ever increasing in its
importance as the number of AIDS cases are still escalating.
"(Two weeks ago), I lost a close friend who died of AIDS,"
Galligan says. "People think it’s been cured, but it hasn’t. People
are still dying."
In 15 years, AIDS has come rapidly into public view as an
estimated 13.9 million people have died from the epidemic
worldwide. People infected with AIDS may even be close friends and
family members instead of merely passing acquaintances.
It wasn’t until three years after Galligan’s first production
that he knew someone close to him who participated in the theater
had AIDS.
"I’m still amazed when I meet people who say they don’t know
anybody with AIDS," says Malcolm Gets, who is best known for his
role as Richard in "Caroline in the City."
"I’ve never done anything except for acting … and the
community was hit so hard so quickly with the epidemic, so I’ve
lost a lot of friends, and a lot of my friends now are still
dealing with it," he says.
Gets continues, "I can’t not do stuff like this. I’ve lost some
really close people to AIDS. Especially because I’ve done well, but
even if I didn’t have a television show, I’d still be doing all
this stuff. In the same vein that I’d like to teach again, I think
it’s a corner that one turns where talking isn’t enough."
Along with giving back to the community, the musical also gives
performers an opportunity to participate in pieces they care
about.
Gets will perform a song titled "To Life" from "Fiddler on the
Roof," a song that he has reinterpreted from the classic piece.
"I didn’t have a clear idea of what I wanted to do," Gets says.
"And then a few weeks later, I just put on the album of "Fiddler"
while I was cleaning and the first song came on was called
‘Traditions,’ and I literally heard one lyric and it was what I was
looking for."
"I’m really proud of it," Gets continues. "One of the most
exciting things about it is that I’m going to stand there and sing
it (without) costumes or the context of the scene. The older I get,
the more interested I am in implying things rather than spelling it
out. I’m really happy with it. I can’t wait to see how it goes
over."
Paul Green, a 1998 UCLA alumnus, will also perform. He will sing
three pieces including "Welcome to the Holiday Inn" with Fisher and
"Whatever Lola Wants" from "Fiddler on the Roof" with April
Nixon.
For Green, being a part of such a high profile group was an
overwhelming experience at first, but working alongside big names
didn’t become an issue at all due to everyone’s desire to do a good
job.
"It was extremely intimidating," Green says of initially taking
on the project. "But when it came down to it in rehearsals, they
were all human beings, and you forget seeing their names in
credits. To them, it’s about the cause … and everyone’s all
really proud to be a part of it and to help in any way they
possibly can."
"Anything that’s benefitting an AIDS charity is something I’ve
always wanted to be a part of," Green adds. "You can go home at
night and know that not only did you hone your craft a little bit
more but you put in your heart in helping somebody."
One hundred percent of the proceeds will go towards the Jeffrey
Goodman Special Care Clinics and Being Alive at the L.A. Gay and
Lesbian Center. STAGE has also benefitted Project Angel Food, The
AIDS Service Center and AIDS Project Los Angeles in previous
performances.
Like the programs and charities designed to help those living
with AIDS, the necessity of a cure for the growing epidemic has
likewise motivated Galligan and the other artists through the years
in doing what they could to help.
"I wouldn’t be good at changing people’s beds and bedpans or
feeding or any of those things. The people who do this are the
angels," Galligan says. "And I thought, ‘What can I give?’"
"As theater artists, they give their talents and (the charity
workers) keep us all motivated towards just trying to find a damn
cure for this disease," says Galligan.
THEATER: S.T.A.G.E. will take place Feb. 26-28 in three
performances: Feb. 26 at 8 p.m.` Feb. 27 at 8 p.m. and Feb. 28 at 3
p.m. at the Luckman Theatre in Cal State Los Angeles. Tickets are
$150, $100, $60 and $30 and are available at all Ticketmaster
outlets. For more information, call (323) 993-7411.
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