Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, May 12, 1994 TAG: 9405120193
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MARK MORRISON STAFF WRITER Note: below
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
\ Toward the end of the night, when the woman started snapping Polaroids of them dressed in their less-than-formal shorts and T-shirts, the members of Alchemy knew trouble lay ahead.
They also thought they probably wouldn't see the $1,500 promised them last Saturday night for playing the Blacksburg High School prom.
Then, when the police showed up afterward - the band says to escort them out of town, without the $1,500 - the band knew it would have a fight on its hands.
What happened was a misunderstanding over how the four members of Alchemy, an alternative rock band, were supposed to dress for their performance at the prom.
The misunderstanding escalated, with the school threatening to withhold payment, the band counter-threatening to leave mid-dance, a verbal lashing by the band's bass player, alleged police escorts, and - finally - calls to lawyers.
The episode also says something about the ever-present generation gap between kids and adults, students and teachers, in a world becoming more and more casual with each new wave of rock 'n' roll.
The problem Saturday night was that Alchemy wore shorts and T-shirts, the band's standard-issue uniform.
Prom adviser and teacher Jean Wright had expected something more formal. "Nice J.C. Penney clothing," she told the band afterward, according to guitarist Kenny Seay. Long pants, and shirts with collars.
Wright cried breach of contract.
The band members say they had been assured that shorts and T-shirts would be OK. They never would have agreed to play the prom otherwise, they say.
Alternative bands just don't dress up.
Tuxedos are what Wright and the school originally had in mind. Alchemy's agent, Perry Caligan of King's Entertainment in Roanoke, said he talked with Wright before the prom and they agreed on pants and shirts instead. What type of pants and shirts was not specified, Caligan said.
When the band arrived at 8 p.m. Saturday to play, guitarist Seay said Wright asked if they planned to change from their shorts and T-shirts before going on stage.
The band thought she was joking at first, Seay said.
They soon realized she wasn't. During a break between sets, Wright said she would have to talk to the school's principal, Alfred Smith, about whether the band would be paid their full $1,500 fee.
Alchemy is a full-time band based in Roanoke that tours on the regional college and small nightclub circuit. Seay said the group gave up a chance to play Roanoke's Progressive Music Spectacular on Saturday to play the prom because the pay was better. "This is the paycheck for the week," he said.
"It would be like working all week and then having your boss say, 'Well, we're not going to pay you.'''
The band members threatened to pack up and leave, but they said Wright told them to at least wait until the principal arrived to discuss the situation with him. Smith was supposed to be there at 10 p.m.
Seay said the band also didn't feel right about deserting the students in the middle of their prom. The band played on. At one point, the band members borrowed tuxedo jackets from students to wear as they played.
The student committee that chose the prom band had wanted Alchemy for the dance since last fall, said Shonali Shome, the committee chairwoman. She said the students wanted something different from The Kings, a more middle-of-the road group that had played the prom the previous three years.
"Alchemy seemed like a cool band," Shome said.
By 11 p.m. Saturday, principal Smith still had not arrived at the dance. Seay said: "Some lady came up and kept taking Polaroids. I reckon it was evidence."
Smith arrived shortly before midnight, when the band finished playing. He and Wright told the band it would not get its fee until after they could talk with the band's agent and had consulted with the school's attorney. Smith said a partial payment might be offered.
"I never said that I was going to withhold payment forever," Smith said.
The band members weren't clear on that point, and they were left wondering whether they would be paid at all. The group's bass player, Kevin VonDerHofen, lashed out at Smith and Wright, accusing them of giving them the shaft - only he said it in words that can't be printed in a family newspaper.
A short time later, additional Virginia Tech police arrived to back up the two officers already assigned to the dance. Tech police worked the prom because it was held at Tech's Squires Student Center.
The band members said three police cars escorted them out of town. Police Chief Mike Jones said his officers did not escort the band members out of town, or even as they drove off-campus.
Wednesday, the band met with its attorney.
Smith referred questions to Kim Ritchie, the attorney for Montgomery County Schools. But Smith did say that he believes the band did not fully honor the contract. He also said he does not believe the dispute was silly.
"It's according to what your standards are," he said.
Telephone messages left for Ritchie, Jean Wright and Montgomery County Schools Superintendent Herman Bartlett were not returned.
Alchemy's agent, Caligan, said Ritchie called Wednesday and offered to settle with the band for $1,000. Seay said the band would agree on $1,300, just to avoid going to court.
"I think that's crap, but we really need the money," he said.
By late Wednesday, a settlement still had not been reached.
Shome, prom music chairwoman, said most of the students at the prom were lukewarm about Alchemy because it didn't play enough slow songs. Otherwise, Shome said, she and other students didn't care about how the band was dressed.
"I think they still need to get paid," she said. "I mean, they played for four hours."
by CNB