OXFORD-The scene this Saturday at Tad Smith Coliseum will resemble a Hollywood movie premiere as celebrities gather for Mississippi Rising, a benefit concert for victims of Hurricane Katrina. Faith Hill recently confirmed her appearance joining a star-studded list of entertainers including Morgan Freeman, Ray Romano, Whoopi Goldberg, Jason Alexander, Sela Ward and more than 37 others.
Oprah Winfrey, who was rumored to be at the concert, is not going to attend. Sam Haskell, executive producer of the concert, said there are offers out to other celebrities with responses expected in the next few days.
Haskell, former worldwide head of television for the William Morris Agency, along with Lanny Griffith, chief executive officer of Washington, D.C.-based lobbying firm Barbour, Griffith & Rogers, LLC, have organized every aspect of the event.
Award-winning writers and producers are being flown in to help organize the event along with a famous chef, Haskell said. “This is going to be one of the largest benefit concerts for Katrina relief,” he said. The Mississippi Hurricane Recovery Fund will be using a contribution by United Health Foundation in Minnesota to fund the concert.
Corporate sponsorships are also being solicited. The proceeds from ticket sales and donations will be given to the Mississippi Hurricane Recovery Fund and portions will go to the Hurricane Katrina New Orleans Recovery Fund. Norman Easterbrook, director of the Gertrude Ford Center for Performing Arts, said the concert will be more like a telethon.
The celebrities will do more than perform on stage, Easterbrook said. Celebrities will take part in answering phones and collecting donations, as well as filming public service announcements which will be aired during commercials, he said.
Gov. Haley Barbour and members of the Mississippi congressional delegation will also be in attendance at the concert. There will be reporters from all major networks, including the major national newspapers. Security at the concert will be very tight with a joint effort between private security firms, university, local and state police.
“We have over 100 volunteers helping us, and we could not pull it off without them,” Haskell said.
The volunteers include students, local residents and members of the Haskell Foundation in Amory who are familiar with benefit concerts. The Haskell Foundation in Amory holds a benefit every two years to raise scholarship money in honor of Haskell’s mother.
The coliseum has a capacity of about 4,000 and more than 2,400 tickets have already been sold.
“There are plenty of good seats available, and we will be successful with ticket sales,” Easterbrook said. Tickets are available for Mississippi Rising at the coliseum box office as well as online at http://www.olemissticketoffice.com. The benefit concert will air coast-to-coast live on MSNBC. The concert will start at 7 p.m. and end at 10 p.m.