Happy Feet

Maurice Hines brings renewed joy and fancy footwork to Crossroads Theatre.

By: Kristin Boyd
   When Maurice Hines began taking tap dance classes at age 5, he’d run home after every session and teach the steps to his 3-year-old brother, Gregory.
   Gregory could master the moves immediately, but Maurice, who had to practice more, could remember the intricacies of a routine. "That’s why we always worked so well together," Maurice Hines says.
   For decades, the brothers were like a perfect shuffle-ball-change combination, balancing succinct moves and dynamic flair during thousands of television, movie and stage appearances.
   In the months following Gregory Hines’ death in 2003, however, Maurice Hines lost his desire to dance. Ready to walk away from the spotlight forever, he handed his beloved tap shoes over to his mother.
   Mr. Hines, who’ll hoof it up during An Evening with Maurice Hines at Crossroads Theatre in New Brunswick April 26 through 29, says The Secret by Rhonda Byrne has since restored his faith — and, thus, his happy feet.
   "Baby, you’ve got to buy this book," he says. "It’s all that and a bag of chips. It made me feel gratitude and joy. I am very grateful for the gift God has given me, and he didn’t give me this gift not to share it."
   When Mr. Hines talks, he sounds like that cool family friend who has seen and done the things others only dream about — like performing on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson an estimated 35 times, or watching Nat King Cole create a frenzy at the Apollo Theater.
   He’s funny and endearing, but at the same time, he’ll chop anyone spouting nonsense down to size. "What is this, all these boys, talking about bling-bling," he says, exaggerating his voice for effect. "What is bling? Please. It’s just silly. You need to get an education, learn some respect."
   Raised in Harlem and the Bed-Stuy section of Brooklyn, Mr. Hines says his parents taught by example and pushed their sons toward greatness. In their home, school came first. Everything else came second.
   Mr. Hines’ mother enrolled him in a neighborhood dance class, hoping the activity would help her introverted son open up and make friends.
   "What can you do," Mr. Hines says the teacher asked on the first day.
   "I can turn around," he said.
   "OK, turn around," she said.
   Mr. Hines says he performed six pirouettes. "Oh, wait a minute," the teacher said. "You can dance. You got something special."
   From that moment, Mr. Hines was hooked. "I loved the freedom of dance, and it became an obsession," he says. "There’s nothing like dance."
   It took some finagling, he adds, but the teacher eventually allowed young Gregory to join the class, too, after watching him tap a routine — without a misstep.
   The boys, often praised for their talent and technical skills, soon formed a tap-dancing duo. One day, Mr. Hines says, they’d be playing ball in the park; the next, they’d be flying off to Paris for a show or opening for Lionel Hampton.
   "We were there with the greats, the Josephine Bakers, the Lena Hornes, the Nat King Coles," Mr. Hines says. "I loved the lifestyle. I loved traveling and meeting new people. We really did love dancing together. It was a great time in our lives."
   In time, their father joined them, and the group, Hines, Hines and Dad, performed regularly in New York, Europe and on television.
   Eventually, Mr. Hines pursued a solo career. He went on to become the first African-American director at Radio City Music Hall and starred in the National Touring Company production of Guys and Dolls with Debbie Allen, Leslie Uggams and Richard Roundtree.
   "One reviewer said I was the Richard Pryor of musical comedy," Mr. Hines says, still blown away by the comparison. "My mother laminated that review, and I still have it. He was a genius, and anything compared to him is amazing."
   For Uptown…It’s Hot, a 1986 production that he also conceived, directed and choreographed, he earned a Tony nomination for Best Actor in a Musical. His most recent Broadway production was 2006’s Hot Feet, which he is hoping to reprise, this time with singer Gladys Knight in the lead role.
   Mr. Hines says he lost his heat when his brother died from liver cancer more than three years ago. "I didn’t want to go on stage," he says. "I didn’t want to tap anymore. That feeling consumed me," he says.
   That all changed one afternoon while he was walking past St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. One of the sanctuary’s doors opened, and he entered, sat on a pew and stewed in his thoughts. In those quiet moments, he started on the path to renewing his faith.
   Soon after, he was working with singer Donna Summer and Robert DeNiro’s wife, Grace, on a choreographed routine for a charity ball. Ms. Summer suggested he read The Secret, and the book, he says, was the boost he needed to shake his funk and start tapping again.
   The book and his prayers have given him a renewed joy, which shines through in his current performances. Mr. Hines’ father even noticed the difference during a recent show and sobbed in his dressing room on closing night.
   "Whatever you’re going through, it’s showing," his father said through tears. "You know all the tricks to get the audience into (a performance). Tonight, there were no tricks. You were just you. The audience was just into you."
   He plans to bring the same oomph to his Crossroads performances, he says, adding, "I’m outrageous. I will say or do anything to please the audience, and I include them in it. They like it. We’re here together. It’s not a movie. It’s live theater."
   During the show, Mr. Hines will share his background and his recollections of the legends, including Sammy Davis Jr., Louis Armstrong and Diahann Carroll, he has met through the years. Mr. Hines, a jazz performer, will also give a tribute, To Nat King Cole With Love.
   Above all, he’ll show off his happy feet.
   "I feel joy about life. I can’t stop it. When I come to Crossroads, that’s what I am bringing — my joy," he says. "So come out because I am going to be fabulous for y’all."
Maurice Hines, accompanied by the Sherry Maricle DIVA Jazz Orchestra and jazz pianist Frank Owens, will perform An Evening with Maurice Hines at Crossroads Theatre, 7 Livingston Ave., New Brunswick, April 26-28, 8 p.m., April 28-29, 3 p.m. Tickets cost $40-$45. (732) 545-8100; www.crossroadsnb.com