Lester Wilson, who conceived John Travolta's dance moves in Saturday Night Fever (1977) the following year, choreographed the stylized gestures and poses for Sister & the Sisters, which are reminiscent of girl-group moves from the 1960s. The cast sung their own songs in Sparkle, but the soundtrack featured Aretha Franklin singing all the vocals, a sore point for fans of the film. The music was less like the music of the period and more in keeping with the styles of the 1970s with echoes of Motown. Curtis Mayfield, who had been part of the Chicago soul group The Impressions, penned the songs and conceived the musical score. In retrospect, the songs and music are considered the film's strength by contemporary reviewers. Michael Peters, who won a Tony for his choreography for Dreamgirls, plays an outrageous rhythm-and-blues artist along the lines of Screamin' Jay Hawkins. Rogers went against this expectation and instead wore a tuxedo and spoke directly to his audiences no matter their race. They had to perform in pairs or play characters, including those in blackface and garish clothes. When Rogers began his career, black comics were still performing using heavy slang and vernacular and could not directly address a white audience.
Comedian Timmie Rogers appeared as the emcee at the Shan-Doo Club. Comic actor Don Bexley, best known for his role as Bubba on Sanford and Son, played the bawdy emcee during the amateur contest sequence. She was cast in several notable films and Broadway productions of the 1970s and 1980s, including Francis Ford Coppola's The Cotton Club (1984) and Gardens of Stone (1987).Īfrican American audiences likely recognized a few familiar faces in cameos and bit roles sprinkled throughout Sparkle. McKee benefitted the most from Sparkle as reviewers singled out her vibrant performance, and she became an idol for a generation of African American girls.
#Sparkle 1976 cast full#
Levi is portrayed by Dorian Harewood, who went on to a successful career as a character actor in film and television, including Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket (1987). Stix is played by Philip Michael Thomas, who would become a major television star as Ricardo Tubbs on Miami Vice. Sparkle was her second feature film, preceding her breakthrough performance in Fame by four years. Cara was only 16 when she costarred in Sparkle, but she had already been performing on Broadway and on television for nine years. Sparkle boasts a notable cast of newcomers, who would go on to wider fame, as well as bit players who were veterans of black entertainment circuits from an earlier era. Dwan Smith costars as Delores, who becomes more interested in racial issues and politics than singing, while a teenage Irene Cara plays the title character who is destined to be the biggest star. Lonette McKee stars as Sister Williams, a beautiful, self-assured woman who falls under the sway of a smooth-talking rogue who leads her into drugs. They quickly become a sensation in the local club scene, but the sisters display disparate personalities, creating a stumbling block to fame and fortune. The trio are managed by two young men from the neighborhood, Stix and Levi. In Sparkle, three Harlem sisters-Sister, Delores and Sparkle Williams-form a singing group in dubbed Sister & the Sisters. Along the way, a diva emerges from the group while the others fall prey to the temptations of men and drugs. The essential ingredients for such a tale includes their management by a Svengali-like male, who must contend with clashing egos and a merciless music business. The success stories of these all-female singing groups were told and retold in publicity, biographies and promotional materials until an archetypal tale emerged that seemed to describe the path to success for all of them. But, before Dreamgirls, there was Sparkle, a 1976 musical starring Irene Cara, Lonette McKee and Dwan Smith, which was a precursor and maybe influence on the more well-known play and film.īoth Dreamgirls and Sparkle follow a dramatic arc familiar to a generation who grew up with the actual girl groups of the 1960s, specifically the Supremes. Most would identify this as the plot to the 1981 Broadway musical Dreamgirls and its 2006 film adaptation. As they work their way toward success, they find the road to stardom is paved with heartache, temptations and disappointments. In the late 1950s, three talented female singers from the inner city form a girl group.
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