In celebration of the Michigan Theater's 70th ing of Charle Chaplin's "The Circus" is present wrote, directed and acted in this 1928 silent c tured a score by Chaplin. The fun begins at 8K cost you just $18.50 to become "Circus" peon come on down to the Michigan tomorrow. -Boys Choir brings Harlem to A2 By Jessica Simmons For The Daily Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was undeniably one of greatest examples of humanity, not only to African Americans, but to the world. He had a dream, and part of that dream was to help better the condition of the African-American commu- nity through unity, education and opportunity. With this in mind, it is only fitting that the Boys Choir of Harlem be a part of the scheduled -events to honor the late Dr. King. The choir's existence is built around the essence of King's vision for his people. The Boys Choir of Harlem was first founded as ;' P RI the Ephesus Church Boys Choir in 1968 by current The director and president Walter J. Turnbull. Turnbull, a nationally renowned con- Hils Audito ductor, tenor and educator, founded the choir for young African-American males as an alternative to the troubles facing them on the streets and in the schools of Harlem. He wanted to be a part of the solution for these young men, rather than just talking about the problems they face. ri Since its founding, The Boys Choir of Harlem has grown tremendously. When the choir first started, it was a small community ensemble per- forming primarily in church services. The choir has since grown into an institution of 500 boys and girls from ages eight to 18. In the 1970s, the choir made the transition from performing mainly in church services to giving concerts and recitals to the public. In 1979, The Girls Choir of Harlem and the Touring Choir were established. The Boys Choir of Harlem has performed overseas in France, Belgium, Japan and the E V I E W Netherlands. Its first European tour has even Boys Choir been captured in an Emmy of Harlem Award-winning documen- sunday at 7 p.m. tary, "From Harlem to ium; Tickets $12-$26 Haarlem: The Story of a Choir Boy" The choir has sung for major events including the opening session of the U.N. General Assembly and Nelson Mandela's arrival in the United States. The group has also lent its vocal talents to soundtracks for Spike Lee's "Jungle Fever" and "Malcolm X" as well as the Grammy Award-winning soundtrack from "Glory." The Boys Choir of Harlem impressively blends classical music, popular song, spirituals, gospel, jazz, hip-hop and choreography to con- struct performances that have created its reputa- tion for stellar showmanship and performance. But whilethe choir has used singing and per- forming as its benchmark, this is only a small fraction of the organization's comprehensive objective. Turnbull's ultimate goal is to teach members discipline and integrity and to help them learn responsibility and values they can take with them into adulthood long after their choir days. Music is only one vehicle he has used to accomplish this task. Turnbull was able to help make a greater impact on the children's lives after a school was created in 1987 for choir members. In the Choir Academy of Harlem, Turnbull attempted to teach his children not only singing, but also real-life, everyday values as well. Through the Boys Choir of Harlem, the choir Academy of Harlem and all of his exhausting efforts, Turnbull has accomplished the unthink- able for youths. He has taught them never to set- tle for second-best and that through hard work and determination, they can achieve their S V The staff of "ER" will return to the NBC lineup for three more seasons. Must-PayT . nabs 'E'for $13 M 'Undercover' return By Leann Dawson For the Daily The season premiere of "New York Undercover" illustrated an "out with the old, in the new" philosophy. In this case, the new is represented by a different lieutenant named Barker (Tommy Ford), who will "do whatever it takes" to get the bad guys. His team con- sists of weapons and computer expert Alec Stone (Josh Hopkins) and the multifunctional - well, she doesn't seem to R1 have any defined role - Delaney (Marisa Ryan). Into this cozy little set-up walks Williams (Malik Yoba) and Moreno (Lauren Velez), who, as fans will remember from last season, are trying to cope with the death of partner and husband Eddie (Michael DeLorenzo). There is a neat link-up of storylines as the episode focuses on Jordan, a woman responsible for a string of armored car robberies, and, some- what conveniently, Eddie's rather spectacular death in an exploding car last season. Surely, Williams and Moreno haven't been assigned to this new unit because they have a personal interest in the case? Well, yes, actually that is the reason, although it takes them at least half of the episode to come to that conclusion. Meanwhile, the audience is treated to a few memories of Moreno and Eddie together to the strains of Toni Braxton's "Unbreak My Heart." But for anyone who ircus' anniversary, a screen- ted. The Little Tramp comedy, which also fea- p.m. on Saturday. It'll pie for one night - so Friday January 16, 1998 ae p 4 3 'T , ing Harld gesoudinporn ro r atnLte ig rtHluioimo The main urpose offheKsnwhas sashw uLt.hgkelsseme hksndownetr mind, asemosfttangatiae bsallteodmothascesowhereamiegshoureaowns has a oiento t hobeid ot h is sngthe nly ts ima gsanrod upce a ho we - aact - weapons, explosions, a bit of human interest thrown in on the side but its attemp to blur the line between law and outlaw is perhaps a little toc ,E V i E W sucessful Barker's outburst at Moreno for almost destroying the New York undercover operation, and Barker's overall devotion to vio- Undercover lence - he later fakes killing Moreno, thanks to a bullet-proo FOX vest with blood bags - makes it a little hard to have much Thursday at 9 pam sympathy for either the individual or the force he represents. It's easy for the show's producers to claim that he has to be 2 strong character because of the people he is out to get, but when he uses the exact same methods as the criminals, the differences between them almost disappear. The one difference that remains - the fact that Barker's violence is sanctioned by the law - is the one that should really be causing the most concern among audiences. Of course, both Moreno and Williams, despite their earlier remonstrations against Barker come to understand and respect his methods by the end. And they are rewarded by being assigned to his team permanently, thus allowng for the "widening of appeal" wanted by executive producer Dick Wolf. Williams and Stone bond when Stone rigs up a remote starter for his car'- understandable, the mem- ory of Eddie's exploding vehicle is still fresh in Williams' mind, and Moreno and Williams draw closer in their grief. Aspects of the show are certainly very favorable. Both Yoba and Velez give strong performances, and the action moves along at a steady pace. Yet at times the camera work is reminiscent of "NYPD Blue" and the human interest storylines are in danger of descending into stereotype. Plus, the preoccupation with gadgets and explosions poses the question of what will happen when they run out of things to blow up. But that probably won't happen for a while. The explosions will at least buy some time for the writers to work on the sript. Maybe theyll even find some decent music to go with it. a 0Ik JaZZ Exploratimns into tie Music of the Grateful Deal featuring Biy Cobbam, JimmU Hening, Alphonso Johnson, 8 T. Lavitz with special guest Mern Saunders l A A Thurs February 5 Blind Pig wirn The Washington Post NBC, which was left on the sidelines during the record-setting NFL television deals this week, held on to its marquee drama series "ER" for three more sea- sons by agreeing Wednesday to pay series producer Warner Bros. Television just under $13 million per episode. The price marked another eye-pop- ping milestone in TV dealmaking, com- ing amid the $17.6 billion in National Football League contracts signed by NBC's rivals this week. To keep television's top-rated show from jumping to another network, NBC agreed to pay $286 million per year for 22 original episodes (and a like number of repeats). During the three-year life of the deal, the network will shell out more than $850 million to essentially rent "ER" through the 2000-01 season. NBC, after losing "Seinfeld" after this season, and after losing its AFC football contract to CBS, saw its dominant position among the networks threatened by the potential loss of "ER," the medical drama that has been a cornerstone of its blockbuster Thursday night lineup for four seasons. Robert Daly, Warner Bros. chair, said in an interview with The Washington Post on Wednesday that negotiations with his company were unaffected by the NFL talks. NBC wrapped up the "ER" deal Monday night, while still in the run- ning for the "Monday Night Football" contract won by ABC. But Jerry Seinfeld's decision last month to end production of his sitcom did cause NBC to step up the pace of negotiations over "ER," Daly said. The $13-million-per-episode license fee more than doubles the previous industry record: NBC pays some $5 mil- lion for each episode of "Seinfeld." That show is produced by Castle Rock, which, like Warner Bros., is a subsidiary of Time Warner. Both Daly and NBC West Coast President Don Ohlmeyer said the license fee for "ER" accurately reflected the show's value, particularly in view of recent public comments by other net- work executives (notably of CBS and Fox) indicating they were willing to negotiate with Warner Bros. if NBC decided to pass. "NBC made an enormous profit on 'ER' over the years," Daly said. "Warner Brothers lost money producing the show in years 1,2, 3 and 4"-production com- panies typically produce network series for more than their license fee, hoping to earn profits from syndication reruns and foreign sales of a program. "We said to NBC, 'It's time for the bill to be paid."' If the deal had failed, NBC risked not only losing the big "ER" audience, but also engendering the perception that it is an ailing network, something that could have had a ripple effect in the Hollywood creative community. "We're in a tough business," Ohlmeyer said. "This business has changed more in the past 24 months than it has in the past 24 years.... Every one of us is struggling with reinventing our- selves. "If you've got a program that has developed an extraordinary bond with the audience, you damn well have to do everything you can to keep it." Malik Yoba returns for the premiere of the retooled "New York Undercover," which now takes place at a high-tech, downtown "Mission: impossible"-like unit. I a The University of Michigan School of Music Saturday, January 17 Faculty Recital Erling Blondal Bengtsson, cello; Anton Nel, piano " first recital of the complete piano/cello music by Beethoven Britton Recital Hall, E. V. Moore Bldg., 4 p.m. Sunday, January 18 Martin Luther King Day Celebration Leslie McCurdy, dancer " The Spirit of Harriet Tubman, written and performed by Leslie McCurdy, UM dance alumna Mendelssohn Theatre, 5p.m. Faculty Recital Erling Blondal Bengtsson, cello; Anton Nei, piano * second and last recital of the complete piano/cello music by Beethoven n .t+,..nD- -;s~1 L1~11 J"7 [I A Jnn- d1A JA "I" ___ ., I