Tony winner Melba Moore to mentor LI students at Adelphi festival

Tony Award-winning actress Melba Moore made her Broadway debut in "Hair" in 1968. This summer, she's revisiting the age of Aquarius in a new way, by collaborating with young talent for the Long Island Musical Theatre Festival's 13th season.

From July 28 to Aug. 10 at Adelphi University in Garden City, students ranging from third grade through college will take part in a musical theater intensive and work alongside Moore for a full production of "Hair" and a revue inspired by the show titled "Raise Your Voice With Melba Moore."

"The revue is going to explore themes of identity, racism, politics, peace and all the themes that 'Hair' explores. Moore's also going to be singing in it, as well as some of the students," said Steven Altinel, founder and artistic director of the festival. "Hearing her perspective, especially now, will be really impactful for the students."

Moore was a part of "Hair" at a time when the show's message and casting broke new ground. She was the first Black woman to replace a white woman in a lead Broadway role, when she took over as Sheila after Diane Keaton left "Hair." In 1970 she won a best feature actress Tony for the musical "Purlie." Her other Broadway credits include "Timbuktu!" (1978) opposite Eartha Kitt, and in 1996 she played Fantine in "Les Misérables."

Moore's return to "Hair" in a mentorship role adds a depth to the festival's program. "It's about kind of pushing against the establishment," said general manager Vanessa D'Aconti. "Every time 'Hair' comes back around, it's all very timely,"

When Altinel started the Long Island Musical Theatre Festival in 2013, he had a clear goal: to provide high-level, preprofessional experiences for young performers. "It was about creating a main stage production with a full professional orchestra, and now we've grown to what we are today," he said. "Part of my mission is also to give these kids an opportunity to do shows that they normally can't do again, at their own high school, whether it's because of subject matter or difficulty."

The festival's previous master class artists have included Roslyn Heights-raised Stephen Schwartz, composer of Broadway hits such as "Wicked" and "Godspell"; and Great Neck's Adam Kantor, who performed in "Rent" and "Fiddler on the Roof."

The program is structured in three tiers, with beginners ranging from third to sixth grade, intermediate from seventh to ninth grade and advanced from 10th grade to college. All intermediate and advanced students must audition.  

To audition for each tier, participants submitted a video featuring two contrasting musical theater songs of their choice, with accompaniment and at 32 bars each. One selection from the show they're to perform, "Bye Bye Birdie," was encouraged for intermediate tier applicants. Submissions also included a headshot and resume for advanced tier applicants and a short video sharing an interesting personal fact for the intermediate group. Callback notifications for the advanced section were sent on May 10.

"Generally, the students we attract are kids who are really committed to the craft," Altinel said. "But, we are firm believers that this program is not just for kids who want to pursue musical theater as a profession, but love the art form for the sake of making them better people and building relationships and being better at whatever they choose to do."

D'Aconti noted that many people are surprised that such a high-level program for musical theater exists locally.

"Everybody thinks you have to go to Manhattan for these training programs, and you don't," she said. "You can do it right here on Long Island and still get the same quality and get the Broadway artists brought to you."

For the full schedule of performances and ticket info, go to limtf.org.