December 30, 2014

‘Kennedy Center Honors’ a presidential showcase in spirit

The space between Christmas and New Year’s sometimes feels like a prolonged hyphen until the next holiday. A few years ago, I discovered a celebration during this placeholder week by watching the televised annual “Kennedy Centers Honors.” The ceremony took place earlier this month, yet, usually airs the night before New Year’s Eve as if CBS knew we needed a little something (a kind gesture from a network that seldom runs its programs on time so be forewarned; I still don’t know what happened at the end of “The Good Wife.”)
The program recognizes individuals whose works have contributed to the cultural pulse of this country. Many recognizable names have been honored — Meryl Streep, Tony Bennett, Sidney Poitier, Steven Spielberg, Sir Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen, to name a few. It’s an elegant roast and toast. This year’s honorees are Al Green, Tom Hanks, Sting, Patricia McBride and Lily Tomlin.
Sting’s charisma alone is enough to ignite the celebrity-packed evening, but I’m most excited to watch the tribute to Patricia McBride, mainly because I’ve never heard of her, just like I was unfamiliar with last year’s honoree Martina Arroyo, and Jerry Herman years prior. It can’t be easy to be sandwiched between huge stars such as Streep and Springsteen, but their success stories are as compelling as those of a Beatle.
Arroyo, born in Harlem to a Puerto Rican father and African-American mother, rose above economic, social and racial barriers to become one of world’s best opera singers. Barriers didn’t scare Arroyo; she grew up not knowing of them because her parents said she could do and be anything. She credits them with giving her “an open mind and open spirit.”
As last year’s show highlighted clips of Arroyo’s soprano voice softly, then, dramatically caressing the works of Verdi and Puccini, it was clear she was more than worthy of the iconic Kennedy rainbow ribbon-adorned medal.
Same with past honoree Broadway composer Jerry Herman, a New Jersey native who produced shows such as “Hello Dolly” and “La Cage aux Folles.” His parents, both school teachers, exposed him to Broadway musicals and encouraged his love for and gift of music.
The Kennedy Center awards remind me of the integral link between the arts and everything else. But they also remind me of the power of love and encouragement, a power that can place a poor girl from Harlem and a creative boy from New Jersey in plush balcony seats next to the president of the United States.
Parents, friends and teachers shaped them. Another New Jersey native – Streep – said her only regret in receiving the Kennedy honor was that her parents didn’t live to see it.
“The tuitions for voice lessons, summer jobs and loving care and discipline that they gave me bore fruit in a way they never dreamed,” Streep said.
I’d like to think Streep’s parents knew of their daughter’s possibilities just as Arroyo and Herman’s mom and dad did, too. That’s how we parents think. And why we spend countless, long hours at practices and recitals and, well, anything that consumes our time, money and emotions.
And we wouldn’t trade it for anything. We believe in our children and the value of honing skills and passions into something beautiful. Not all parents think this way nor do all children have a supportive team behind them. But, it sure is magical when they do. I bet Tuesday’s honorees would agree.