Under Nell's Spell Nell Carter is harassing orphans as the evil Miss Hannigan in the 20th- anniversary Broadway production of 'Annie.' But offstage, she's a typical Jewish mother. MICHAEL ELKIN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS N ell Carter ain't misbe- havin'. She's just a lit- tle frustrated, trying to get those seats at the Martin Beck Theatre filled with more kids to see Annie. Thank God, she says, she has Judaism to keep her from getting jaded. Not all of her fans realize it, but Nell Carter, who plays the harri- dan Miss Hannigan in the 20th- anniversary revival of Annie, most certainly is Jewish. "I've been Jewish all my life, you know?" she says, Stars of David twinkling in her eyes, pointing to her heart as she offers a visitor to her mid-Manhattan hotel suite a sampling of hospi- tality and humor. "How'd you like some bad cof- fee?" Carter is perkin'. The Tony Award-winning star ofAin't Mis- behavin' says Judaism keeps her joint jumpin'. Religion is her emo- tional and spiritual fuel. No one had to convert Carter to the wonders of Judaism. "Ifs such a wonderful religion," she 'says, noting that although she had felt Jewish for a very long time, she went through the actu- al Conservative conversion process 13 years ago — and not because she wed a Jewish man in her second marriage. "No," she says, "I married him because he was Jewish. It was time, she notes, that her religious status was finally in sync with the way she felt in her soul. Going through the ritual just felt right: "It was a way of ac- knowledging just who I am." Being involved in a legendary family show like Annie is impor- Michael Elkin is entertainment editor of the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent. Talking about a trip she once Judaism, Carter says em- "My grandmother said to me took to Israel, accompanied by her phatically, bolstered her will to to do what I thought was best, rabbi, David Baron, Carter fo- triumph over the trauma. that I have only one soul and cuses on the time she spent at the "I couldn't see, but I wanted should take care of it." Western Wall. my Bible and a book of Hebrew Carter has taken pains to en- "You cannot help but feel prayers," she says of her requests sure that her son Joshua knows deeply loved and spiritual" as a to her doctors. his people's past. Jew in Jerusalem, notes Carter. "I went into the operating "I will teach him German," she As she sits in her suite, over- room singing `Shabbat Shalom.' says, "so he'll understand about looking Central Park, Carter ac- the people who tried to decimate knowledges that life hasn't Not everyone in her family has us." always been an amble down easy greeted Carter's conversion to Ju- Carter gained a better under- street. daism with well wishes, but, she standing of her in-laws by ques- There was the double brain says, "I could care less what they tioning them about what it aneurysm she suffered some years think." meant to be survivors of the Holo- ago, in which she temporarily lost She has a grand backer in her caust, a subject, she discovered, her sight and almost died. grandmothenoro BY CAROL ROSEGG/JOAN M ARcht, until then, was verboten. `That was the beginning of the end of my marriage," she says of the reaction her ques- tions provoked. "I had crossed the line. I discussed something that had not been discussed [in the family] before. It took a stranger like me asking ques- tions. They were never able to finish their loss before," to deal with the pain of their past, until Carter forced them to face the issue. "It's amazing what we hide from each other, how much damage we do to each other," says Carter, who will never hide her pride in being Jew- ish. In fact, she has often thought about making aliyah. Meanwhile, she has thrown herself into the de- cidedly unlovely role of Miss -\ Hannigan, scourge of or- phans. Does this mean that Miss Hannigan is Jewish? "No," says Carter, without hesitation. "I don't know any mean Jewish ladies." When the sun comes up tomorrow, Carter will once again be onstage. But one thing she leaves at the stage door is any ambi- tion for her son to follow in her fast-flying feet. Sure, she says, he can get into show business — one day. "Right after he becomes the first black Jewish Re- publican president of the United States," she says. ❑ tant for the family-oriented moth- er of three. "I want to see more kids in those seats, more families com- ing to see this show," she says. Bringing children into the- ater — "having them sit next to each other — black, white, Jewish, Christian — is a good way for them to get to know each other." It's the ticket to mutual understanding, Carter contends. When it comes to peace and harmony, she believes in both religiously. "Two of my children are Christian, and my son Josh, 7, is Jewish," she says. Josh, she says, has his priorities straight. "He was dating a 6-year-old girl, and she said to him, 'Is it true you are black?' Josh said, 'No, actually, I'm cocoa." The performer who got her TV break in "Gimme a Break" sits in her hotel room quoting Broadway stories and Bible lore. The Birmingham, Ala.-born actress, born Catholic and raised Presbyterian, seems to have been bred with a Jewish sense of humor. "I keep a kosher house real easy," she says. "I don't cook." It is safe to say she is at peace with her religion. "To me," she says, "Judaism is the safest religion." Safe? What about the her- itage of hate Jews live with? The history of 5,000 years of persecution? What about Jews who argue with other Jews about the direction of the reli- gion? "We do not disagree with each other," she says softly. Nell Carter: "I keep a kosher house real easy," she says. "I don't cook." "We discuss." e For tickets to Annie at `--\ the Martin Beck Theatre New York, call (212 239-6200.