Pregnancy Week 36

Singing and dancing about singing and dancing.(Entertainment)

The Register Guard (Eugene, OR) January 11, 2004 Byline: Fred Crafts The Register-Guard Florida actress Mekia Cox may be dying on stage in “Fame,” but her career is definitely alive and well.

Only 22, Cox is one of the stars of the national touring production of the Broadway musical “Fame,” which will play at the Hult Center on Friday and Saturday.

A recent Florida State University graduate, Cox plays Carmen, a high-spirited singer-actress-dancer whose career gets bushwhacked by drugs and her life comes to a sudden stop.

For Cox, the role is a real stretch.

“This is one of the first characters I’ve played who is actually very different from me,” she says. “It’s fun to be ‘the bad girl.’ Well, she’s not exactly the bad girl, but you can see where she’s going.

“She’s very spunky and fiery, and I’m kind of laid back. She lets everyone know that she knows what she wants. She’s very outward with her actions. I know what I’m going for; we just do it in different ways.” Cox landed the role last summer, not long after graduating from Florida State, where she had been in such plays as “The Apple Tree,” “Once Upon a Mattress,” “Cabaret,” “Chicago,” “Company,” “Lucky Stiff” and “Hair.” In her spare time, she had been a principal dancer at Walt Disney World and in such television shows as “Noah Knows Best,” “Keenan and Kel,” “All That,” “My Brother and Me,” “Check it Out,” “Hot Spot,” “Hard Rock” and “Disney Parades.” During the summers, she did shows for the Heritage Repertory (“Smokey Joe’s Café” and “Anything Goes”) in Charlottesville, Va., and Merry-Go-Round Playhouse (“Ragtime” and “South Pacific”) in Auburn. N.Y. in our site keenan and kel

Then came the national tour of “Fame,” a musical that trades on the success of the 1980 motion picture and subsequent television series.

“Fame — The Musical” was written by Jose Fernandez, with lyrics by Jacques Levy and music by Steve Margoshes.

It has had more than 5,000 performances in 300 productions in 16 countries. After touring England, Germany, South America, Asia, Australia, Eastern Europe and Canada, it is now back in the United States.

“I personally enjoy the musical better than the movie,” Cox says.

“A lot of the characters are based on the same characters in the movie, but they are not exactly the same characters. And a lot of people come to the show expecting to see and hear the songs from the movie, but the only song that is actually in the movie and in the musical is ‘Fame.’ The rest of the songs are different.” For Cox personally, the highlight comes when she sings the song, “In L.A.” “That’s her lowest low,” Cox says. “She tries to be all up and peppy for her friends and show off what I did ‘In L.A.,’ but inside she’s all messed up in the head. It’s probably one of the biggest numbers in the production. It has lots of dancing and lots of light.” The musical, set in New York’s High School for the Performing Arts, traces the paths of six different young people.

“It deals with race issues. It deals with drug issues. It’s still set in the early ‘80s.

“It shows what was going on with students in the performing arts. It shows the progression of these students over four years and where the paths lead them.” Although doing a national tour has been an eye-opening and enjoyable experience, Cox hopes her own path leads her to a show on Broadway. keenanandkel​.com keenan and kel

“I’ve wanted to be on Broadway ever since I was a little girl,” she says.

“I’ve been dancing since I was about 3. That’s all I ever wanted to do. I’ve always said, ‘If I don’t make it on Broadway, at least I’ll die trying.’ ’ Fred Crafts can be reached at 338‑2575 or fcrafts@guardnet.com.

THEATER PREVIEW Fame What: Talented teens seek fame in the movie– turned-TV series-turned-Broadway musical, staged by a national touring company When: 8 p.m. Friday; 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday Where: Hult Center for the Performing Arts, Seventh Avenue and Willamette Street How much: $20 to $42.50, through the Hult Center box office (682‑5000) CAPTION(S):

Mekia Cox (center) has the lead in a national touring production of the musical “Fame,” which stops in Eugene next weekend for three shows at the Hult Center. Mekia Cox says she is shooting for a role on Broadway. For now, she is starring in a touring production of “Fame — The Musical.”

You may also enjoy:

• Pregnancy Week 39
• Pregnancy Week 37: Full Term!!
• Week 23!