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Page Bl-THE CHARLOTTE POST-Thursday, March 24, 1977
Beginning Tuesday
Pinevifle Dinner Theatre
To Present “Tom Jones”
By Deborah Gates
Post Staff Writer
Executive Producer W.C.
Hartigan and General Mana
ger Richard Puett proudly
presents “Tom Jones," an
original musical comedy bas
ed on Henry Fielding’s famous
lusty novel, coming to the
Piheville Dinner Theatre be
ginning Tuesday March 29
through Sunday April it.
Miss Janet Volz
...News correspondent
Janet Volz
Wfll Co-Anchor
WBTVNewB
BUI Ballard, WBTV News
and Information Director, has
announced the appointment of
Janet Volz as news correspon
dent and co-anchor of WBTV’s
6 o’clock Scene Tonight. Miss
Volz comes to Charlotte from
WBTV’s sister station, WWBT
in Richmond, Virginia.
BaUard said, "We do have a
lot of extremely talented peo
ple on the current staff, and
we’ve used a number of them
during the interim period in an
anchor role. All were consi
dered for the permanent an
chor slot, however, we feel
Janet Volz brings a different
dimension that wiU add to the
present anchor team of John
• Wilson, Clyde McLean and
Jim Thacker.”
BaUard added, “She is an
experienced reporter and co
vered both the Democratic
and Republican Conventions
in 1976. Her most recent as
signment has been to cover
this legislative session of the
Virginia General Assembly.
She co-anchored WWBT’s e
lection coverage in November
of 76 and has a substantial
amount of anchor experience
at our Richmond station.”
The musical comedy was
written by Don MacPherson
with words and music by Paul
Holden. It is a fast moving
show with the dialogue cut to a
minimum, and the story line
given throughout by a viva
cious narrator costumed as a
traveling troubador.
She loads the plot into each
scene and breaks in on the
action when it becomes too
risque. Tom Jones, the story’s
hero, is an incurably amorous
young man whose many bois
terous antics keep the play
- moving briskly. Many other
brilliantly drawn characters
crowd the scenes, including
the lovely Sophia whose shape
is not only delicate but exact,
and those irrepressible hypo
crites Thwackum, Blifil and
Square.
This version combines both
the best of true theatre with
the best of nightclub entertain
ment, by being a “Book” show
with a definite plot, and hav
ing such things as blackouts,
slow motion and fast motion
scenes, and freezes.
The use of a harpsichord as
one of the main instruments in
the orchestra adds authentici
ty to the show, as do the
costumes which are all copies
of the 18th century originals.
Although this fresh new ver
sion has been written for
adult audiences, in a true
fairy-tale tradition, the vil
lains come to no good, and the
hero and heroine end up living
happily every after.
NAACP Image
Awards Set
For April 24
The Beverly Hills - Holly
wood NAACP’s Tenth Annual
Image Awards Show and din
ner has been set for Sunday,
. April 24, at the Century Plaza
Hotel, it was announced today
by Bill Lane, Chalrmanof this
year's event.
In making the announce
ment Lane stated: “In cele
bration of our 10th anniver
sary, we expect this year’s
show to be the most spectacu
' lar in the history of the Image
Awards.
“We have added new cate
gories for minorities in com
mercials and in sports on
television, which provides a
much broader base for ‘ima
ges’ in entertainment."
B.T. EXPRESS
^Popular musical group
Hottest Record Selling Group
B.T. On An Express To Stardom
With their untiring efforts
finally paying off, B.T. Ex
press is on the verge of becom
ing one of the hottest record
selling groups for 1977. In less
- than three years in the music
industry, the group has enjoy
ed combined single and album
sales totaling over five million
records. With this foundation
firmly established, B.T.’s fu
ture has promises and hopes
of having all of their future
albums reach the platinum
status.
Their rapid climb to the top
of the record industry beet
selling charts was the result
of their immediate acceptance
on the disco circuit with a hit
single and album, both titled,
“Do It TUI You’re Satisfied.’’
Currently winding post-pro
duction on their second album
for Columbia Records, "Func
tion At The Junction,” group
leader and saxophonist BUI
Risbrook commented: “This
album will show that we in
tend to be around the business
for years to come. We put a lot
of work into this project,
which was a labor of love for
the entire group."
In addition to writing most
of their songs, the group has
retained Jeff Lane, who was
responsible for their earlier
hit albums, as producer and
guiding light in the studio.
“We believe in staying with a
winner, and one thing you
don't do, is change horses in
the middle of the stream,”
Risbrook stpted.
Things haven’t always been
peaches and cream for the
Express, prior to their record
ing success the group went
through several changes of
personel. In 1972, their mana
ger, King Davis, took Ris
brook and guitarist Richard
King Davis House Rockers.
The House Rockers proved to
be the backbone of B.T. Ex
press; playing local clubs a
round New York they slowly
increased their following.
The House Rockers evolved
several more times, new
members were added when
Risbrook found five additional
musicians including his bro
ther Louis. By 1973, they were
known as the Brooklyn Truck
ing Expaess, which, you gues
sed it, was cut to B T. Ex
press.
Since that time The Ex
press, (whose current mem
bers are Michael Jones, key
boards; Leslie Ming, drums;
Uennis Rowe, Congas; Ri
chard Thompson, guitar; Car
los Ward, sax and flute; Louis
Risbrook, vocals and bass and
Bill Risbrook, sax and flute)
have toured extensnely
throughout the United States
and have appeared in quite a
few cities in the United King
dom. In addition, the group
has appeared in concert with
the Commodores, Graham
Central Station, Blue Magic
and numerous other groups
In all of their appearances
they have almost stolen the
show from the headliners.
Risbrook recalled, “In New
Orleans with the Commodores
we left them standing on their
feet screaming for more."
And if the past is an indica
tion of the future for B.T
Express, the world will be
shortly begging for more from
this explosive group