THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 5, 1994 TAG: 9408030121
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 08 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JUDY PARKER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 58 lines
TALK ABOUT SHOUTING from the housetops.
For the first two years Unity Celebration's Gospelrama was held, performers took to the stage without benefit of microphones or sound system. Just pure vocal power.
This year's eighth annual Gospelrama, however, scheduled for Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Portside, will be as professionally produced as any musical extravaganza around, according to organizer Christine Davis.
``From the very beginning of Gospelrama, our purpose was to reach out to un-churched people,'' she said. ``And even during those first years when we were learning how to put it all together, there were spiritually uplifting experiences.
``That's why people keep coming back, and why the audience gets bigger every year.''
The first two years, Gospelrama was held at I.C. Norcom high School. The annual event moved to Portside in 1988.
This year's Gospelrama will feature more than 40 groups and individual performers offering a spectrum of church-oriented music including traditional choirs, gospel quartets, and even a Christian rapper.
The event is sponsored by HOPS (Helping Others Progress Successfully), a non-profit organization started by Davis in 1985. The group's goal is to establish racial harmony in the city.
Gospelrama was first held as part of a three-day Unity Celebration that Davis organized in 1986.
``The gospel music part of the celebration was so popular, we decided to hold Gospelrama by itself the next year,'' Davis said. ``When it first started we only had all-black groups performing. But now it's fully integrated, and last year our audience was 50 percent white and 50 percent black.''
Approximately 2,000 persons attended last year's event, Davis said.
``It's really a beautiful sight to see everybody sitting together, singing and clapping to the music.''
Although there is no charge to attend the three-day gospel music festival, donations of canned goods are encouraged, Davis said.
``HOPS tries to help as many hungry families as we can during the year. We collected about 150 cans of food during Gospelrama last year.''
While audiences have grown steadily during the past eight years, so have the numbers of individuals and groups wanting to perform.
``We try to give everybody who wants to perform a chance to do so,'' Davis said. ``If they don't do very well, we just don't ask them back the next year.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photos
Among the 40 groups and individual performers offering a spectrum of
church-oriented music are the Brothers In Christ (above) and The
Word Singers by CNB