The Party’s Just Begun for Debbie Allen
You either got it, or you don’t. What a stiff statement. It’s also one that has been the legs of the performing arts industry for a long time and Debbie Allen has got it, and—more importantly—kept it.
As a dancer, singer, actor, director, producer and choreographer, Allen has made a career out of multiple careers. She’s been involved in some of the top TV series, movies and Broadway musicals.
Her work can be highlighted with a soundtrack of veritable hits: “America” (“West Side Story”), “I’m Gonna Live Forever” (“Fame,” of course), even the TV show “A Different World” had a memorable theme song. Always a performer, Allen uses her knowledge and familiarity to direct and produce, allowing her to connect with and motivate the actors and dancers.
With the new “Fame,” set for theaters September 2009, Allen will step in front of the cameras again playing the part of Principal Angela Simms, now overseeing the performing arts high school that made her a star.
As Lydia Grant in the widely popular TV series “Fame,” she was the authoritative, lovable and motivational character everyone needed in order to believe these talented kids could make it after the New York City High School of Performing Arts. But Allen’s career did not begin with “Fame”; in fact she knows first hand what it takes to be a working performer.
She was trained in many techniques and disciplines, including tap and ballet. She was influenced and inspired by Katherine Dunham, taught by Talley Beatty, Alvin Ailey, Judith Jamison and JoJo Smith, of JoJo’s Dance Factory, but she was drawn most to ballet.
Her acting took shape at college, where she came into her own as a performer. It is often the unexpected path that is most enriching. “[Acting] happened by default. I wanted to go to the North Carolina School of the Arts, but I was rejected. I was devastated, but they made up for it with an honorary doctorate,” she laughs. She then decided to attend Howard University, studying the classics, drama and speech, while studying dance after school hours.
In musical theater productions, her acting skills improved, making her the proverbial “triple threat,” all in preparation of the career ahead. “By the time I auditioned for [Leonard] Bernstein and [Jerome] Robbins for the part as Anita, I was well versed in acting.” Cast as Anita in the 1980 Broadway production of “West Side Story,” her recognition and respect as a dancer, actor, singer was on the rise. (Anita is, perhaps, one of the most alluring and truly lively characters in musical theater—for me, a personal favorite).
Allen had many Broadway debuts and acted and danced in a number of TV series, but it was “Fame” that gave impetus to the success of her career. Not only a member of the cast, she was also a director, producer and choreographer of the show.
“‘Fame’ was like going to grad school for me. I learned how to direct. It was there that I honed my skills as a director and producer and I did all the choreography. It was really like being in graduate film school.”
Winning Emmys and Golden Globes for her work on the series, it would seem an award show night would be an ideal (and glamorous) time to reflect upon all you have achieved. “It was really pretty phenomenal. I remember the night wining the Golden Globe, my father was in the audience.” She was there for her role as Lydia Grant. “I became a darling, if you will. My character was so strong,” she says with revere.
“I loved going to the Emmys and I always won an Emmy for my choreography, not acting,” she laughs, recalling the actresses she was up against. “We had a good run, it went on for six years. It was the first series on network cable.”
Never only a dancer or actor, director or choreographer, she utilized these skills to compliment each other. She was going places but would not peg herself into one category, one career path.
“I consider myself versatile. ‘Most Versatile’ was what I was voted in high school,” Allen says. “I was already in ‘West Side Story,’ and ‘Ragtime’ and [had] directed. I always saw myself as versatile. My multi-layered talent allowed me to stay vibrant.”
A perpetual learner, she found useful experience in all her opportunities. “You can never learn enough, there’s always something you don’t know. I don’t care who you are. It’s that dancer’s courage,” she proclaims.
With the success of the TV series “A Different World,” so came the raging success of Allen’s directing/producing career. One of the most popular shows in the late 80s to early 90s, it delved into timely issues. But Allen didn’t see her role, as the show’s director, as a predetermined path. It was the right fit at the right time.
“An opportunity comes and if you are prepared, you will go. Everything kind of works out,” Allen asserts reassuringly. “In ‘A Different World’ my mission was to go and make it relevant. That was my mandate from Bill Cosby, to go and make it relevant. I wanted to get the writers and actors on the same page.”
It’s likely her success as an actor/performer is the exact reason she became an accomplished director/producer. Her relatability to both sides of the industry allowed her to unify the show. She applied this to the many acting and directing jobs she had over the years. As a choreographer, she worked on “Fame” the series, and for artists like Michael and Janet Jackson and Mariah Carey. She also choreographed the Oscars 10 times. Often, becoming a choreographer can present unique obstacles for dancers. “I’m inspired about my work and challenged. It’s a real big thing to create with me,” she says. “I just had to figure it out.”
As a director and producer, Allen took the next step—towards movies. She produced “Amistad,” with Stephen Spielberg, and directed one of Lifetime Channel’s most popular movies, “Life is Not A Fairytale: The Fantasia Barrino Story.” “It was nothing like anything I had ever done before, but everything I had done prepared me for that.”
For obvious reasons, Allen is a proponent of the arts. A member of the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities, she works to represent America’s youth. As Cultural Connect Ambassador, she expands dance education to countries like China and India. “Cultural diplomacy is one of our strongest tools,” she says of representing America.
In 2001, she opened the Debbie Allen Dance Academy in Culver City, CA. “It’s like living ‘Fame’ in the real world,” Allen comments. “You have to raise funds. Some kids are focused; some are not focused. It’s a wonderful challenge, something to look forward to.” Using her personal savings and connections, she opened the school with a reputable faculty and solid mission. “I wanted it to be a state-of-the-art conservatory, with a comprehensive dance vocabulary. I have been successful because I started ballet, then Ailey, then Dunham, all of these different techniques. It has helped me speak the language of dance.”
Returning to Broadway in 2008 as director of the acclaimed “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” Allen was in charge of a groundbreaking cast, including James Earl Jones, and Phylicia Rashad (Allen’s sister). “I was ready for it. I have so much experience in theater and background in literature. I was a great choice for it. Many thought Debbie Allen? But I knew I was good for it.”
“In the dance world, you need discipline and strength. These are the things that you need to survive, that you need to continue to do. You have to stay at the barre,” she says.
Experience and advice like this is what the performing arts are all about, it is what “Fame” is all about, and Allen will step on screen again with even more to give.
“I never wanted to be away from the camera, it just kind of happened that way. I am always Ms. Grant,” she laughs. “We always wanted to do it again; we knew it would happen.”
Alongside a cast of young hopefuls (including some from Allen’s academy), and accomplished performers like Bebe Neuwirth, Kelsey Grammer and Megan Mullally as fellow teachers, the school comes alive for a whole new generation.
“I felt relaxed playing Principal Simms. It’s something I do every day, talking dress code, running the school. The world is tough, it requires discipline and you really have to role up your sleeves.”
As such a large part of the original series, it is only fitting that Allen should be part of the new cast. “I always paid homage to ‘Fame.’ It is always something that belongs to me for so many reasons. ‘Fame’ is part of my legacy.”
The upcoming movie may have a jazzy logo and an updated story, but there are some things that stay the same. That essence of raw talent, sweat and tears is as enchanting now as it was years ago.