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:Thanks to Avery Brooks
Atlanta,
the "Summer of 1996", the 5th Biennial NBAF.....
Avery Brooks at every performance, at every venue, boomed out a message
that was the focus of the Festival: "'The Ark of the Spirit' is the
voice of our ancestors and we must live the performance as if admittance
to the Pearly Gates depends upon it." Artistic director of the `94
and `96 NBAF, Brooks was indeed an icon, a drum major for an international
observance and celebration highlighting the art and culture of people of
African descent.
Popularly known as Captain Benjamin Sisko, commanding officer, Star Trek, Deep Space Nine (now in its 6th season) Brooks is every bit as engaged today as he was while producing national festivals at the time when Atlanta was receiving worldwide attention.
The Hollywood productions are a stylish method of paying the bills to finance more meaningful ventures that strike at Brooks' core. "Avery has this commitment to the culture that is all encompassing," says Deborah J. Richardson, NBAF Managing Director since 1995. "You can't separate Avery from his work and the importance he places on sharing the art and culture of our people. They are one "
Brooks never saw NBAF as just an event. "It was very clear to him that we were an important institution," Richardson says. "Avery saw us as having a major imprint on our culture. And, more than anyone else, he challenged us to raise our vision of the organization from event to institution. He really made us look beyond our comfort zone and stretch toward uncharted territory."
Brooks made his first NBAF appearance in 1990 in his critically acclaimed portrayal of Paul Robeson, an African American scholar, star athlete, famed actor/singer and national activist of the '30s, '40s and '50s. During `92, Brooks and Dionne Warwick served as NBAF co-chairs. "He was more than anybody's co-chair," smiles Harriet Sanford, director of the Fulton County Arts Council and former NBAF president. "He was here every single day, but one. For two years, I would pick him up after he arrived on the `red eye' [overnight flight from west to east coast] on Saturday morning. I'd meet him at the airport and he would say, `Uh! The rules, don't speak.' And I would drop him off, he would sleep for 2 hours and work for the next 18 hours straight!"
Brooks gave the NBAF its national platform because of his stature in the arts community, according to Richardson. "Avery would call artists and say come join me in Atlanta for this important event, and they responded." A Rutgers University alumnus where he was the first African American awarded a Master's in fine arts in acting and directing, Brooks has played Othello at Washington's Folger Theater, Robeson on Broadway and has appeared in numerous other theatrical productions. His credits include the television series A Man Called Hawk and Spenser: For Hire. The Indiana native's baritone has won him recognition in The Musical Legacy of Roland Hayes. "That made it all the more special when he came to us as artistic director," said Sanford. "Avery gave his all: heart, body and soul and inspired others to reach heights not thought attainable.
He left the NBAF last year to concentrate his energies on family and career, doubly challenged with obligations and homes in California and New Jersey. Currently, he is filming TriStar's production, The Big Hit ; later this summer he will appear in Paramount's American History X.
Brooks' legacy at NBAF may be his articulation of "how we are all connected and tied to a higher being," Richardson said. "That was translated at the Festival as our being all inclusive. Avery believed in allowing everyone's voice to be heard. We've learned to share and articulate our deep passions and commitment for the arts, no matter what our backgrounds. As a result, we are a better organization."
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