[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 112 (Friday, August 1, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1627-E1628]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


    TRIBUTE TO MR. FRED DARIS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, THE SOUTH BRONX 
                        COMMUNITY ACTION THEATER

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOSE E. SERRANO

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, August 1, 1997

  Mr. SERRANO. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to Mr. Fred Daris. He 
has been a dear friend and lifelong teacher to me as well as to the 
youth in the South Bronx community.
  On August 4, Mr. Daris turns 70 years old. A man who has given so 
much of his life to our community, he still holds ambitious dreams for 
our youth, most of which he has very well accomplished.
  Mr. Daris is the founder and executive director of the South Bronx 
Community Action Theater, established nearly 40 years ago at I.S. 139, 
in my South Bronx congressional district.
  The theater was born from Mr. Daris' desire to provide our youth with 
quality education and the opportunity to express themselves through the 
wonderful world of the arts. This performing and creative arts center 
evolved from the Burger Players, a student theater group which 
performed in area schools and at special community events.
  From the South Bronx Community Action Theater have graduated 
thousands of students who later became professionals in various fields. 
Some have joined the center's extended family, such as Mr. Rick Scott, 
who became the theater's administrator. I was also a product of that 
dream, as one of the first students to participate in the Burger 
Players.
  Guided by Mr. Daris' determination, knowledge, and wisdom, youngsters 
who are part of the theater complete their studies with a sense of 
accomplishment and of a bright future before them.
  At the center, students learn dance, drama, singing, the plastic 
arts, costume design, how to play an instrument, and all other 
components of an artistic production. They learn to visualize their 
dreams and to reach out for them.
  In addition to Mr. Daris' commitment to the center, the South Bronx 
Community Action Theater has been in existence in large part through 
funding provided by title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act and with the collaboration of parents and other members of the 
community.
  Mr. Daris has always looked after his community. Before he founded 
the South Bronx

[[Page E1628]]

Community Action Theater, he had already accumulated a wealth of 
experience as the director of St. Marks Playhouse and of the Royal 
Playhouse, both in New York; as dramatic arts instructor at Cambridge 
School of Radio and Television Broadcasting; as the founder of the 
Stamford Playhouse, in Connecticut; and as assistant director at the 
Mark Hellinger Theater and Carnegie Hall. He also created a theater 
group at every Greek church that could offer plays in English and Greek 
in Greater New York.
  He is the first American citizen to receive a royal scholarship 
awarded by King Paul and Queen Frederika of Greece, to study at the 
Royal Theater of Greece. He also completed studies at Irvine School for 
the Theater, Adelphi College, Long Island University, and Fordham 
University Theater, where he was a graduate scholarship student.
  For the many years that I have known him, Mr. Daris has always shown 
his great esteem, patience, and dedication to our youth and to 
betterment of our community.
  Mr. Speaker, for all of these reasons, I ask my colleagues to join me 
in recognizing Mr. Fred Daris, on his 70th birthday and for his life of 
accomplishments and dedication to our youth. Thank you, Fred. We all 
love you.