Marvin Hamlisch discovers a star
By JOY TIPPING / The Dallas Morning News
jtipping@dallasnews.com
You think you had a busy weekend? Consider that of Marvin Hamlisch.
On Thursday afternoon, he auditioned 45 young singers, dancers and instrumentalists at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, for possible performances in Dallas Symphony Orchestra pops shows.
Twenty-four hours later, he had chosen 19 students, mostly dancers for the Christmas shows, and was on his way to rehearsal with the DSO. Late Friday, word came that he had been named principal conductor for the Pasadena (California) Pops. Unless he picks up another orchestra or two today, that makes eight orchestras nationwide, including the National Symphony and Pittsburgh Symphony, where he concurrently holds the position of principal pops conductor.
That number includes Dallas – on Friday night, Hamlisch, who has a decades-long history with the DSO, made his official debut as pops maestro for the symphony, conducting an all-Gershwin program that had an adoring audience all but swooning. Guest pianist Kevin Cole joined the orchestra for a brilliant Rhapsody in Blue; he, Hamlisch and the DSO conspired to delicately, joyously extract every iota of passion and drama from Gershwin’s masterpiece.
Oh, and in Hamlisch’s vast spare time? He plucked a 17-year-old girl from relative obscurity and made her a star.
At the auditions Thursday, some of the classical voice students had no idea of Hamlisch’s stature as a composing legend in the theater and film worlds. The theater kids, though, all but vibrated with excitement. Kimberly Kottwitz, 16, summed it up: “If you don’t know who Marvin Hamlisch is, I don’t even know why you’re alive. … I mean, A Chorus Line, A Chorus Line, A Chorus Line!”
The auditions boasted an amusing mix of old-school and high-tech. One singer found her note by plucking it on the piano. Another found his by playing it on his cellphone.
Throughout the process, Hamlisch exuded gentle kindness and humor. “Now you’re done and maybe you can smile a little, right?” he gently teased one young woman after she went a bit off-key during her song.
The undeniable star of these auditions, he says, was Dacia Kings. The 17-year-old vocalist was one of the last to try out – but as Hamlisch says, “It doesn’t matter if they’re number 42 or number 630, when someone’s that terrific, you notice.” He was so impressed with Dacia’s rendition of “Someone to Watch Over Me,” accompanied by her jazz-pianist father James Kings, that he invited them to perform with the DSO at this weekend’s shows.
The song was already on the program, but Dacia didn’t know that – she says she simply chose it because it reminds her of her brother James, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver in Austin in 2008. At the time of his death, James was a senior at Booker T.
“I saw her audition at 5:30 yesterday,” Hamlisch told the audience Friday night. “At 5:32, I was asking if they could be here for these shows. By the time she’s finished tonight, she’ll have a tour.” As Hamlisch watched from the sidelines, grinning like a proud uncle, Dacia and her dad received a standing ovation.
