BWW Interview EXCLUSIVE: Ben Vereen on New Show, Fosse, Arts Education and More!

Iconic Broadway performer, Ben Vereen, is performing at the Newman Center for the Performing Arts on Friday, February 3 at 7:30pm in Denver, CO. Ben, whose campaign revolves around arts and education, is thrilled to partner with Rocky Mountain PBS to bring his one man show, Steppin' Out with Ben Vereen, to the University of Denver. This is a particularly exciting stop on Ben's itinerary as it is his first concert after his January 30th induction into the Theater Hall of Fame, the highest honor in theater. Additionally, Ben will be riding the wave of his Hawaiian tour where he will play five concerts, give numerous masterclasses and lectures, and participate in the Martin Luther King, Jr. rally. It's also exciting to note that Vereen recently reunited with the cast of Roots in Oprah's home for a 35th Anniversary Special on OWN, and that he is developing a new one man show that will run on Broadway in 2012 before touring the country.

Vereen’s show is a unique blend of artistry, combining a tribute to Broadway, Frank Sinatra, and a very special tribute to Sammy Davis Jr. Featuring hit songs such as “Defying Gravity,” “Mr. Bojangles,” and “Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries,” Ben Vereen Sings Broadway and More is a contemporary and timeless journey through the Broadway songbook. Ben has been headlining performing arts centers and symphonies across the country. Each performance is filled with song and dance, stories of his life, a great deal of humor, and always multiple standing ovations.

Rocky Mountain PBS celebrates its 56th anniversary on air in January 2012, reaching more than 1.2 million people throughout Colorado each week. Rocky Mountain PBS was Colorado’s first public television station and continues to rely on donations to sustain its operations. Proceeds from this concert will benefit the statewide network.

The following is BroadwayWorld's exclusive interview with theater, film, and TV legend, Mr. Ben Vereen...

BV: Hello BroadwayWorld! How is Broadway these days?

MM: It is quite wonderful actually, very busy here in Denver. It’s a good thing I love theater! First of all I just want to thank you so much for taking the time to speak with me and BroadwayWorld.

BV: Thanks you for doing this. Also thank you to PBS for allowing me to come to Denver and celebrate with them.

MM: I cannot wait to see you live in concert. I have admired you ever since I saw a PBS showing of your magical performance in Pippin and I further followed your career in The Muppet Show, Chicken George, All That Jazz, and recently with How I Met Your Mother.

BV: Thank you.

MM: So tell me a little about this upcoming performance.

BV: Well, the show is going to be a celebration of the years, of PBS bits. I want to thank our community in advance for coming out and for supporting this. PBS is also supporting themselves and our culture because the arts truly is our culture and PBS is a big part of that. My show will be a preview to a show I'm developing for Broadway called TENACITY that’s based on an album I do called Stepping Out Live. My pre-tribute to those who test my life, like Bob Fosse, Tom O'Horgan, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Shirley MacLaine, and I have some great musicians with me. I will also be joined by the director of the Circles of Light and they will all be joining me onstage. We will just have a celebration.

MM: Sounds wonderful. Do you have that one song that you love to sing in the show?

BV: I love singing all of them. I love performing.

MM: So if you could play any role in a show that you have not been able to, because of either gender or race, what would it be? For example, I have always wanted to play Coalhouse Walker, Jr.

BV: Why don’t you?

MM: I would love to. I sing his songs all the time. But, unfortunately, I’m a white guy.

BV: I don’t look at anything like gender or let anything hold me back. I was talking to Neil Simon and I told him that sort of thing. I said Neil - Why don’t you write me a play? He says, I only write for, you know, Jewish stories. And I said I could play a Jewish story.

MM: I believe that!

BV: Yes, but I don’t let that limit me. You know there’s people out there that are of great vision. It allows me to see the possibilities and allows me to do those things. So I am open to anything.

MM: Is there a role that you could play over and over again and never get tired of?

BV: Employment. I like to play the role of employment!

MM: That’s a good one! Was there any role that you have played throughout your life that you could just go right back into it?

BV: I don’t know. I get into a role and it starts the process. Each show is wonderful for me because we go on forever, and I just get into it. I have played Pippin for 2 1/2 years. I just finished opening a play with a playwright called Will Power called Fetch Clay/Make Man which is another interesting story about Mohammad Ali and a character named Lincoln Perry, whose real name was Stepin Fetchit. That was a wonderful story directed by Des McAnuff.

MM: That does sound wonderful! So how has theatre changed or not changed for minorities since you started?

BV: Well, you know the point is that minorities support the theater more. Praises to Tyler Perry for his form of theater getting African Americans out to the theater more. But I would like to see us embrace those who do Shakespeare or Neil and the other fine writers - Baldwin, August Wilson. Maybe a tenth of the community comes to see August Wilson, who is called the Shakespeare of our times. His writing deals with the African American experience and it will be wonderful to see the African American community support artists in the theater, and support theater as a whole and make it part of their life. Because their life and our life is what makes up theater in this country. That would be a wonderful thing. That will help us change the face of theater and also help us support the theater as PBS is doing with the arts … because the arts is all cultures, an expression of all cultures. It is our civilization.

MM: Yes, it is why I love what I do, because I firmly believe exactly what you said. Is there a role you would like to be remembered for?

BV: Everything I've done, whatever touches their hearts. You know, I am honored to be here to say that 35 years ago we had a little show called Roots, about Alex Haley's journey to Africa. I am proud to say that it is now a part of school curriculums to study Roots and I am proud to be a part of that. To be a part of that history that all of us had no idea that we would be remembered for, or that piece would be remembered, but it is now a part of that fiber that is inside that American education system.

MM: I was in Germany when I saw it. It was so life changing for me that I still remember it to this day and your performance as well. Every actor in there was so moving in their portrayal.

BV: Thank you. Thank you.

MM: I know that VH1 has Save the Music and NBC is starting a music theater in high schools campaign, but what can we do as citizens to help with arts in education?

BV: Support them. Support them! You know, right now the arts are being cut out of our fiber, out of our education, and that’s wrong. Because you are taking out the SPARK! You know, it says in the Bible “in the beginning God created.” It didn’t say that God “manufactured.” It says “created,” therefore we are a created people. If you cut out the arts in the schools, you are cutting out the  expression, which is who created us. It's important. It’s not so much for us to say, “Well the government is doing this or the government is doing that.” No, it's for we the people to stand up and say we will support our culture and support our arts.

MM: Amen.

BV: It becomes our duty to do it and for communities to do it. It’s not government. They’ve got their hands tied with what they’ve got to do. I know what we can do. We can support the arts and save our society.

MM: I couldn’t agree more. So I also have a couple of questions from readers of BroadwayWorld and fans of yours. The first one is, as a classic song and dance man, who do you think continues this tradition on Broadway today?

BV: Oh, that’s a good question. Looking around the field, I really don’t see one that is coming up, but I am sure they are there. I know that I am working on my godson (Usher) to get more involved in theater. He is a pop artist and hip hop artist, but he did get a taste when I brought him to Broadway in Chicago and so he has a desire and a taste for the theater. Maybe we will see more of him and he can bring that along with him. But he kind of said everyone who hits the stage in musical theater is a song and dance man. So the tradition goes on, whether they keep with it, or they step outside that area like I did, to go into multiple concert, club scene. I'm still a song and dance man.

MM: It will be exciting to see that family tradition continue.

BV: That would be nice wouldn’t it? Come on Usher!

MM: Tell me more about your show coming to Broadway, because I know that people are going to be really excited to see that.

BV: It's called TENACITY and it’s a retrospective into my life. What we as a people go through, more of a motivational show, to get people up and into their lives. To see the value of what you’ve been given – a thing called life. No matter what the ups and downs, you can always overcome them if we have the right mindset and go after life with tenacity and a positive outlook.

MM: I love that. Are there any other upcoming projects for you in film or TV?

BV: I'm directing a show called Pope Joan, which is about a female pope. It’s a myth – they say it’s a myth, but we don’t know. It takes place in 1855. There’s more of a theory of this pope and the musical is based on that. We are going after Sting and Tori Amos, maybe, to write the music and I hope to have it up by next year after I take my show to Broadway.

MM: Wow! And with Tori Amos as well. That’s amazing.

BV: Well, keep your fingers crossed. She hasn’t said yes yet, but is looking in my direction to do the music. Then we are going after an awesome number with Sting. So, we will see.

MM: With so many songs be released posthumously, do you think there may be another Bob Fosse work hidden somewhere?

BV: No. Bob Fosse was Bob Fosse. He has inspired a lot of people, but they will be their own expression of their movement.

MM: Right. I didn’t know if Ann Reinking or Gwen Verdon had something hidden of his?

BV: We are trying to keep the tradition alive. I have a group called BDT  (broadwaytheatreproject.com) and we are having auditions throughout the United States and asking people to come out, audition, or see the film clips. Come down and enroll in the group that Ann Reinking started some 20 years ago and to keep this tradition going. We teach Fosse technique, pure Fosse, and it's in Tampa, Florida. It starts in late June and goes through July, three weeks of intensive. We have teachers coming from all over the United States with actors and professors. What we are doing is not only teaching about the arts, but we are also going to
teach components of how to live their lives. It is for ages 16 and up, a lot in their early 20s. So check us out at broadwaytheatreproject.com.

MM: I took a Bob Fosse masterclass a couple years ago and it was a workout!

BV: Well, this program is based on Fosse. It is intense.

MM: Wonderful. Is there a song or saying that you would like your legacy to be?

BV: Yes, I do it in the show. It is called "For the Good", written by Steven Schwartz from the show Wicked. It is pretty much a “Thank You.”

MM: Well, thank you so much for your time. It has been such an honor. I look forward to meeting you February 3rd at your show! Where can we find out more about you and this upcoming tour?

BV: BenVereen.com. All the good in the universe you deserve. May it come to you in great ease.

If you are in the Denver area, you do not want to miss Ben Vereen in collaboration with Rocky Mountain PBS, performing at the Newman Center for the Performing Arts on the University of Denver campus on Friday, February 3rd at 7:30pm. And look for his one man retrospective TENACITY, coming soon to Broadway! For more information on his tour, causes and other projects, visit www.benvereen.com.