Debbie Allen

Debbie Allen

Birth : 1950-01-16, Houston, Texas, USA

History

Debbie Allen is an American film and television actress and director.

Profile

Debbie Allen

Movies

The Hidden Power of Purpose
Narrator
Narrated by Debbie Allen, the film bridges inspiring stories of individuals who have found purpose in their lives with the insights of leading scientists whose work affirms that living with purpose improves health and longevity.
Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to All!
Creative Director
Filmed in New York City at Madison Square Garden, the concert special will feature the singer-songwriter performing a repertoire of Carey's festive holiday hits, including the perennial favorite, "All I Want for Christmas Is You."
A Jazzman's Blues
Choreographer
A tale of forbidden love and family drama unravels 40 years of secrets and lies against a soundtrack of juke joint blues in the Deep South.
Soul of a Nation Presents: Screen Queens Rising
Self
Exploring how Black actresses, a historically overlooked and under-valued group in Hollywood, have in recent years begun to ascend to the top echelons of entertainment and American culture. The special examines how Black actresses of Hollywood have become power brokers and the iconic moments and roles have paved the way for them today.
Angry, Raucous, and Shamelessly Gorgeous
Betty Samson
Anna Campbell, now 65, sparked controversy when she bared it all on stage years ago. When a theatre festival asks to re-stage the work with a younger actress in her role, dramatic and comic fireworks ensue.
Dance Dreams: Hot Chocolate Nutcracker
Herself
This documentary spotlights Debbie Allen's career and follows her group of dance students as they prepare for Allen's annual "Hot Chocolate Nutcracker," a reimagining of the classic ballet.
Dolly Parton's Christmas on the Square
Executive Producer
A rich and nasty woman returns to her hometown to evict everyone but discovers the true meaning of Christmas thanks to the local townsfolk – and an actual angel. Features 14 original songs with music and lyrics by Dolly Parton!
Dolly Parton's Christmas on the Square
Choreographer
A rich and nasty woman returns to her hometown to evict everyone but discovers the true meaning of Christmas thanks to the local townsfolk – and an actual angel. Features 14 original songs with music and lyrics by Dolly Parton!
Dolly Parton's Christmas on the Square
Director
A rich and nasty woman returns to her hometown to evict everyone but discovers the true meaning of Christmas thanks to the local townsfolk – and an actual angel. Features 14 original songs with music and lyrics by Dolly Parton!
Uprooted: The Journey of Jazz Dance
Self
Follow the fascinating evolution of jazz dance from its origins in Africa, through to its modern-day interpretations which reveal the political and social influences affecting the dance form today.
Maurice Hines: Bring Them Back
Executive Producer
Maurice Hines, a charming, gay African-American entertainer navigates the complications of show business while grieving the loss of his more famous, often estranged younger brother, tap dance legend Gregory Hines.
Maurice Hines: Bring Them Back
Herself
Maurice Hines, a charming, gay African-American entertainer navigates the complications of show business while grieving the loss of his more famous, often estranged younger brother, tap dance legend Gregory Hines.
American Tap
Self
The history of tap is an ever-evolving panorama of inclusion, adversity, and reinvention. This in-depth documentary is an absorbing narrative about a quintessentially American dance form—from its origins, to the historic and cultural events that shaped it, to its present day rebirth as a vibrant art form.
A Place for Us - West Side Story's Legacy
Self
A documentary with stars from the original cast.
Fame
Ms. Angela Simms
An updated version of the 1980 musical, which centered on the students of the New York Academy of Performing Arts.
Next Day Air
Ms. Jackson
Two inept criminals are mistakenly delivered a package of cocaine and think they've hit the jackpot, triggering a series of events that changes ten people's lives forever.
Life Is Not a Fairytale: The Fantasia Barrino Story
American Idol Auditionee in Sunglasses
In the Lifetime® movie, THE FANTASIA BARRINO STORY: LIFE IS NOT A FAIRYTALE, a single teenage mother overcomes all odds - sexual abuse, poverty and illiteracy - by relying on her spectacular singing voice. She ultimately gains national prominence as the winner of a hit talent show. Fantasia Barrino plays herself in this modern true Cinderella story. Also starring Loretta Devine, Kadeem Hardison and Viola Davis.
Life Is Not a Fairytale: The Fantasia Barrino Story
Director
In the Lifetime® movie, THE FANTASIA BARRINO STORY: LIFE IS NOT A FAIRYTALE, a single teenage mother overcomes all odds - sexual abuse, poverty and illiteracy - by relying on her spectacular singing voice. She ultimately gains national prominence as the winner of a hit talent show. Fantasia Barrino plays herself in this modern true Cinderella story. Also starring Loretta Devine, Kadeem Hardison and Viola Davis.
Broadway's Lost Treasures III: The Best of The Tony Awards
Anita (segment "West Side Story")
Broadway royalty and Tony-winners Tommy Tune, Carol Channing, Robert Goulet, and Harvey Fierstein are your hosts for this third compilation of great musical performances from the archives of the Tony Award® broadcasts. Legendary stars from legendary shows strut their stuff in 23 performances that have become part of Broadway history.
Confessions of an Action Star
Herself
A 'mocumentary' on the rise and fall of Chip and Dales dancer turned martial arts action star, Francis Allen Sledgewick, AKA Frank Sledge. When fame and fortune caused Frank to lose his sense of what's truely important, he realised he's going to have to get in touch with his roots if there's ever going to be a comeback.
The 1st 13th Annual Fancy Anvil Awards Show Program Special: Live in Stereo
Herself (uncredited)
Cartoon Network holds an awards show awarding cartoon excellence.
It's Black Entertainment
Self
A star-studded tribute (from the creators of That's Entertainment) to the contributions of Afro-Americans in film over the last century. Vanessa Williams traces the struggles and triumphs of the superstars of music and film. Among the many artists featured are: Whitney Houston, Ella Fitzgerald, Sammy Davis Jr., Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Cab Calloway, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, Ella Fitzgerald, and Little Richard, Also included are today's contemporary superstars: Snoop Dogg, Ice T, Quincy Jones, Spike Lee, Russell Simmons, and many, more! 80 minutes plus DVD bonus features.
The Painting
Heath Freeman (Tru Calling, ER) heads an all-star cast including Clifton Davis (Any Given Sunday) Ben Vereen (Roots), Stacey Dash (Renaissance Man) and Debbie Allen (Fame) in the period drama Soldier of Change, which resurrects the turmoil and confusion of the late sixties. Travel back in time to visit a young man, Randy (Freeman) who finds himself immersed in the impassioned civil rights cause in the States, and struggles valiantly to adjust to the changing social fabric around him. But this is only the first of two worlds that Randy encounters. When he is drafted and shipped off to Asia - and the nightmare that called itself Vietnam - this inexperienced soldier must fight for his life and his convictions as he attempts to survive amid the turmoil of a war whose real nature is alien even to the country fighting it.
All About You
Two people run from the pain of their broken past. When they discover each other, they find themselves at a crossroad where the only thing that stands between them and a second chance is each other.
The Old Settler
Quilly McGrath
The Old Settler is the story of two middle-aged sisters, Elizabeth and Quilly, who share an apartment in Harlem in 1943. The sisters quarrel amiably, but they share a wounded history that becomes revealed as the tale unfolds. An earnest but unworldly young man named Husband travels up from the South to board with the sisters while he searches for his beloved Lou Bessie, who left their small town a few years back to find a new life. Husband would like to bring Lou Bessie back home, but she's enamored with the excitement of the city, and her plans are more complicated. In time, Elizabeth and Husband begin a courtship that may or may not overcome their considerable age difference, while Quilly reacts disapprovingly.
The Old Settler
Director
The Old Settler is the story of two middle-aged sisters, Elizabeth and Quilly, who share an apartment in Harlem in 1943. The sisters quarrel amiably, but they share a wounded history that becomes revealed as the tale unfolds. An earnest but unworldly young man named Husband travels up from the South to board with the sisters while he searches for his beloved Lou Bessie, who left their small town a few years back to find a new life. Husband would like to bring Lou Bessie back home, but she's enamored with the excitement of the city, and her plans are more complicated. In time, Elizabeth and Husband begin a courtship that may or may not overcome their considerable age difference, while Quilly reacts disapprovingly.
Everything's Jake
Debbie Allen
A homeless man takes a newly homeless man under his wing and teaches him how to survive on the streets.
Intimate Portrait: Josephine Baker
Herself
From world-renowned performer of the Jazz Age, to WWII spy, to civil rights activist – a look into the iconic life and legacy of Josephine Baker, narrated by Arsenio Hall, including rare archive footage, and interviews with Debbie Allen, Lynn Whitfield (who portrayed Baker in The Josephine Baker Story), and two of Baker’s sons.
Michael Jordan: An American Hero
Deloris Jordan
Michael Jordan: An American Hero is an American television film that aired on April 18, 1999 on Fox. It stars Michael Jace as Michael Jordan.
Mariah Carey: Butterfly World Tour - Live at Tokyo Dome
Director
The Butterfly World Tour is the third concert tour by Mariah Carey, visited Asia, Australia and the United States. The four dates at Japan's largest stadium, Tokyo Dome, sold out in under one hour, breaking the previous record she held at the stadium.
Amistad
Producer
In 1839, the slave ship Amistad set sail from Cuba to America. During the long trip, Cinque leads the slaves in an unprecedented uprising. They are then held prisoner in Connecticut, and their release becomes the subject of heated debate. Freed slave Theodore Joadson wants Cinque and the others exonerated and recruits property lawyer Roger Baldwin to help his case. Eventually, John Quincy Adams also becomes an ally.
Out-of-Sync
Director
A DJ and ex-con is forced to work with the police in an undercover drug sting targeting his boss.
Mona Must Die
Betty
Disillusioned, Eddie is a long-suffering husband who finds passion and happiness with his neighbor, Rachel, a struggling estate agent. Only one thing stands in their way - Mona, Eddie's tyrannical wife who helped Eddie when he was still a recent immigrant, then trapped him in a loveless marriage. As the relationship deepens, the two lovers devise a plan where Rachel is brought into the house as Mona's live-in attendant for Mona must die.
Blank Check
Yvonne
Bullied by his siblings and nagged by his parents, 11-year-old Preston is fed up with his family -- especially their frugality. But he gets his chance to teach them a lesson when a money-laundering criminal nearly bulldozes Preston with his car and gives the boy a blank check as compensation. Preston makes the check out for $1 million and goes on a spending spree he'll never forget. Maybe now, his family will take him seriously!
Sinbad: Afros and Bellbottoms
Director
Sinbad brings the '70s back with a nostalgic stand-up special dedicated to the films, fashion and other flashbacks from that era.
Stompin' at the Savoy
Estelle
As the Harlem Renaissance flourishes in jazzy New York City, Pauline, Esther and Alice struggle to survive. By day, they toil at dreary jobs, dreaming of stardom, riches and happiness. By night, they dance their troubles away at the famous Savoy Ballroom. But when World War II appears on the horizon, the girls find their fortunes unfolding too unevenly to reconcile, and they inevitably begin to drift apart.
Stompin' at the Savoy
Director
As the Harlem Renaissance flourishes in jazzy New York City, Pauline, Esther and Alice struggle to survive. By day, they toil at dreary jobs, dreaming of stardom, riches and happiness. By night, they dance their troubles away at the famous Savoy Ballroom. But when World War II appears on the horizon, the girls find their fortunes unfolding too unevenly to reconcile, and they inevitably begin to drift apart.
Sunday in Paris
Sunday Chase
A pilot for an unsold NBC series. A single woman with three children realizes that her family has lost sight of their values and gives up her career as a daytime-drama actress in New York to move back with her extended family on their Texas farm.
Polly: Comin' Home!
Director
Broadway style songs are used to tell this interesting story of an ingenious orphan who gets involved in matchmaking and striving for inter-racial understanding in 1956 Alabama.
Spike Lee & Company: Do It a Cappella
Self
A 1990 PBS documentary around the topic of A cappella music. Artists that performed as part of the documentary include The Mint Juleps, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Rockapella and The Persuasions. It also stars Spike Lee, Debbie Allen and a cameo appearance by Samuel L. Jackson.
Polly
Director
An musical adaptation of the book "Pollyanna" set in the 1950's in which an orphan tries to use gladness to unite the people in a small southern town.
Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling
Michelle
Although Jo Jo Dancer has achieved success as a stand-up comedian, he hasn't found happiness. After receiving severe burns in a narcotics-related incident, Jo Jo remains in a coma, and, while in this state, he looks back on his life. Drifting off into memories of his troubled childhood, Jo Jo revisits his youth, recalling his eventual rise to fame and the decadence that followed. As he considers his existence, he must decide if he wants to go on living or not.
Night of 100 Stars II
Self
This special is the second "Night of 100 Stars" to benefit The Actors Fund of America. Edited from a seven-hour live entertainment marathon that was taped February 17, 1985, at New York's Radio City Music Hall, this sequel to the 1982 "Night of 100 Stars" special features 288 celebrities.
Disneyland's 30th Anniversary Celebration
Self
Broadcast on NBC February 18, 1985, the Disneyland 30th Anniversary Celebration was hosted by John Forsythe and Drew Barrymore. The special is a look back into the first thirty years of Disneyland's history. Featuring footage from opening day in 1955, including the famous Walt Disney opening day speech.
Women of San Quentin
Carol Freeman
A young female prison guard finds out that her first assignment is to San Quentin, one of the toughest prisons in the country.
Alice at the Palace
Red Queen
Meryl Streep stars as Alice in this production of Elizabeth Swados' musical, which was adapted from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll. Based on the acclaimed New York Shakespeare Festival production by Joseph Papp, Alice at the Palace follows Alice's surreal adventures with The Mad Hatter, The March Hare, The Queen of Hearts, and The Cheshire Cat, among many others.
Ragtime
Sarah
A young black pianist becomes embroiled in the lives of an upper-class white family set among the racial tensions, infidelity, violence, and other nostalgic events in early 1900s New York City.
Fame
Lydia
A chronicle of the lives of several teenagers who attend a New York high school for students gifted in the performing arts.
The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh
Ola
The Pittsburgh basketball team is hopeless. Maybe with the aid of an astrologer, and some new astrologically compatible players, they can become winners.
Ebony, Ivory and Jade
Claire 'Ebony' Bryant
In this prospective pilot, Mick Jade, a tennis bum-turned-Las Vegas-song-and-dance man, doubles as a private eye with two female dancers, Ebony and Ivory. The trio go undercover to protect a lady scientist from international hitmen as she heads for Washington D.C. from the near-East with her super-secret formula.
The Greatest Thing That Almost Happened
Julie Sutton
Just before a championship basketball tournament, a teenage athlete learns that he has leukemia.