Ben Vereen, still a star on and off stage

—Courtesy photo

Ben Vereen is a star because of the immense accomplishments of his youth. His turns on Broadway musicals, in “Hair,” “Jesus Christ Superstar” and “Pippin,” and television, in “Roots,” left an unforgettable impression.

He remains revered because after passing those peak days and struggling past disillusionment, a life-threatening accident and diabetes, he has emerged as a standard-bearer for charismatic performance and contributions to the public sphere.

Still incredibly active as a performer, he’s been in Hawaii on a five-concert tour of the islands, including a show tonight at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center. On Saturday, he’ll bring song, dance and stories from his life to an appearance at Leeward Community College, in a show with his band that will benefit performing arts programs at LCC and the University of Hawaii’s Outreach College.

When I talked to Vereen just after Christmas, he said he planned to scuba dive here on his off time, but he wasn’t taking much time off: He has been conducting master classes and taking part in community activities, including an appearance at the Martin Luther King Day Unity Rally on Jan. 16 in Honolulu and meeting with students at Aiea and Nanakuli high schools.

On working with youth, he said, “I try to give them what they already innately have within themselves. I want to identify that, and hope they will pass it on.”

Now 65, he’s vital and beyond that, joyful — traits that continue to attract admirers.

Dance is a demanding art, requiring that its practitioners have an athlete’s physical control and stamina, and an actor’s ability to project a character and command an audience’s attention.

Vereen has “it” on both counts. If you’ve ever seen him dance, his controlled, sinuous movement is all the proof you need.

He won a Tony Award in 1973 for his portrayal of the Leading Player in “Pippin,” perhaps his greatest role. The musical is not so well known now, but as conceived for Broadway and directed by Bob Fosse, it’s a daring and very adult work of art.

Some fans, too young to have seen Vereen on Broadway, first encountered his song and dance in 1970s appearances on “Sesame Street.” Even there, he projected a dapper, sensuous persona.

In recent years he’s appeared as an actor in a recurring role on CBS’ “How I Met Your Mother.” In 2010, he premiered a stage show about the aftereffects of racism, “Fetch Clay, Make Man,” directed by Des McAnuff (“Jersey Boys”). Variety praised him as the “dramatic center” of that production, and noted his “undiminished charisma and limber body language.”

In February 2011 he released a CD, “Steppin’ Out Live with Ben Vereen.” Vereen said the CD will provide material for his show at LCC.

“The material is inspirational,” he said. “Tenacity is the flame.”

Also last year, he returned to Broadway with the concert “Ben Vereen on Broadway at Town Hall.” For the most part, he said, he’s “too busy” to pursue work on Broadway, though he’d be open to a great offer.

On Monday, he’ll be inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame in New York City.

The TGIF cover of the Honolulu Star-Advertiser for Friday, January 27, 2012.

“I’M LOOKING for excellence,” he told me.

I asked if he had a particular regimen for staying in shape, and his response was, “practice, practice, practice.”

He’s more direct about articulating the philosophy that keeps him involved with good works and community endeavors.

“When you say or do something positive, positive things show up in our life,” he said. “When you say, ‘I can’t,’ that has an effect, too.”

Born in Miami, Vereen won admission to New York’s High School of the Performing Arts as a teen. He was adopted, but didn’t learn that until he applied for a passport to tour Europe with Sammy Davis Jr. when he was 25.

In l992 he was hit by an automobile, suffered a stroke and was in rehabilitation for nearly a year. He needed to recover the ability to dance, to act and sing, and to communicate with an audience. Over time, he did just that.

In 2007, Vereen was diagnosed with adult-onset diabetes, and responded by forging an affiliation with a nationwide nonprofit, Taking Control of Your Diabetes.

But that’s just one of many public organizations he’s served, including the American Red Cross. In return, he’s received three NAACP Image Awards, and an Eleanor Roosevelt Humanitarian Award.

“When you say, ‘How can I serve’ — a higher power, community, God, my loved ones — and learn how to serve, everything changes,” he said. “I had to learn. As a young man, I recall writing down affirmations. … Life is a journey. You have to learn how to deal with the journey.”

The Ben Vereen who has learned how to deal with his own journey is the Ben Vereen you will see on stage Saturday night.

—Elizabeth Kieszkowski / ekieszkowski@staradvertiser.com