In 1970, Near was a cast member of the Broadway musical Hair. She was briefly a member of the musical comedy troupe, "First National Nothing", and appeared on the troupe's only album, If You Sit Real Still and Hold My Hand, You Will Hear Absolutely Nothing (Columbia Records – LP C 30006). She also appeared in films such as Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five, and Minnie and Moskowitz, and had a prominent role in the 1991 film Dogfight.
#AMERICAN MASTERS HOLLY NEAR MOD#
Holly Near's professional career began in 1969 with a part on the television show The Mod Squad, which was followed by appearances in other shows, such as Room 222, All in the Family, and The Partridge Family. After one year, she left UCLA and began to work in film and television as well as with anti war groups such as Another Mother for Peace.Ĭareer Holly Near Performs at March For Women's Lives 2004 – Photograph by Patty Mooney She entered in to a long period of silence until her voice healed. Because Near was trained in a lower range she got nodules on her vocal chords and had to leave the show. She would also meet and work with the female singer in The Weavers, Ronnie Gilbert.Īfter high school, Near enrolled in the Theatre Arts program at UCLA her freshman year she got the lead in the UCLA production of Guys and Dolls playing soprano Sarah Brown. Bernice Johnson Reagon, an artist who would be a great influence for the next 40 + years. Unbeknownst to her, Holly would soon meet one of the founding members of that group, Dr. Near learned later of the original Freedom Singers who sang as part of the Civil Rights Movement. When Holly joined, they began to sound more like The Weavers, three male voices and one female. In the summer Holly attended performing arts camps such as Perry-Mansfield in Colorado and Ramblerny Performing Arts where she studied with jazz musicians Phil and Chan Woods and modern dancer/choreographer Joyce Trisler.Īfter starting high school in 1963, Holly Near began singing with three boys who called themselves the Freedom Singers, a folk group modeled after the Kingston Trio. Her senior year she played Eliza Doolittle in Ukiah High School production of My Fair Lady. Groups like the Soroptimist Club, Lions Club, and Garden Club. She sang in all the high school musicals, talent shows and often was invited by local service groups to sing at their gatherings. She was eight years old when she first performed publicly, and she auditioned for Columbia Records when she was ten. Raised on a ranch in Potter Valley, California. Holly Near was born in Ukiah, California, in 1949 and was
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