The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • Page 154

rMcFSrjiifi of MDaHce' UrueasheSErierpicthGragray 3 i 6 PubUcadiattst to Speak at UCLA Dance Review Terry Gross, host of public radio's discussion show "Fresh Air," will speak at UCLA's Royce Hall Sunday at 4 p.m. Gross will play excerpts from the show, talk about the art of interviewing and field questions from the audience. Information: (310) 825-2101. Not wanting to leave many steps unturned, Alan Harding's choreography includes arm-flailing tap, scis-sor-kicking jazz, partner-swirling swing, passionless flamenco and the requisite precision of straight-backed Irish dancing (although there was one minor collision between several women on opening night). All in all, a stew of shameless strutting.

VICTORIA LOOSELEAF "Spirit of the Dance," Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, 2100 Thousand Oaks tonight through Saturday, 8 p.m.; Sunday, 2 and 7 p.m. (805) 583-8700. case David King is also its composer, there is bound to be trouble, and "Spirit" has its share: Weaving two hours of "storytelling" a ballerina searches the globe for her true love around a melody that is reminiscent of Andrew Lloyd Webber's theme for "Phantom of the Opera," this contrived concoction features bastardizations of "Danny Boy" (as if sung by Darth Vader), back-bending fiddlers scratching out "Turkey in the Straw," and what amounts to Irish karaoke, with microphone-wearing performers crooning over the uber-schmaltz taped musical score. And the dancers? There is plenty of energetic shuffling, but with their glazed-eye, plastered-smile looks, the troupe of 30 has a mechanized, soulless style in need of a beating heart. Patricia Murray is the lead Irish stepper, flying across the stage with vacuous, if technically precise, aplomb; Claire Holding, dancing Janet Lewis' Vegas-style choreography, is the gyrating ballerina; and Kirk Taylor stomps up a storm, in addition to vocalizing on the relentlessly manipulative series of "Spirit" songs.

Does the world really need another fog-shrouded, sequin-swinging, high-kicking cousin of "Riverdance," the theatrical phenomenon that brought Irish step-dancing to stages, television screens and dentist offices everywhere? Apparently so, if Tuesday night's rabid audience for "Spirit of the Dance," a true jumble of blarney at Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, was any indication. When a show's producer in this DM HOMESDURCE www.latimes.comhomesource Prime-Time TV Rankings Viewers Don't Take Shining to ABC's 'Storm' Paper Fiir February 20 21, 1999 Pasadena Center Exhibition Building 300 East Green Pasadena, CA Saturday. 10 a.m. 7 p.m., Sunday 10 dmission $5., with this ad $4. Free Return Privileges 1 elusion of a two-part "The X-Files" fade 12 from ABC's woes last week also extended to the network's Tuesday lineup, as the Feb.

9 showings of the previous week. "The Hughleys," "Spin City," "Sports Night" and "NYPD Blue" all slipped to season lows. By contrast, CBS delivered its highest Tuesday movie rating in more than two years with "Murder at 75 Birch Street," starring Melissa Gilbert. The WB's "7th Heaven" continues to be one of the season's success stories, attracting that network's biggest audience ever. BRIAN LOWRY The opening of Stephen King's latest miniseries didn't scare up the sort of crowds the writer's name has drawn in the past, delivering a blow to ABC's February sweeps effort, based on results issued Wednesday by Nielsen Media Research.

"Storm of the Century," which stars Colm Feore and concludes tonight, has thus far attracted the lowest ratings ever for a miniseries based on King's work, falling just below "The Shining" in 1997. Moreover, the finale faces NBC's "ER" and the heavily promoted departure of George Cloo-ney. "Storm" has already knocked some wind out of one series hit, as Fox saw tune-in for the con- National Nielsen Viewership Mere are the rankings for national prime-time network television last week (Feb. 8-14) as compiled by Nielsen Media Research. They are based on the average number of people who watched a program from start to finish.

Nielsen estimates that there are 256.6 million potential U.S. viewers age 2 and older. Viewership is listed here in millions. lit mm Net- View-Program work era 102. The Wayans Bros.

WB 4.12 103. For Your Love WB 4.07 104. 7 Days UPN 3.81 105. Dilbert UPN 3.69 106. Unhappily Ever After WB 3.61 107.

Moesha UPN 3.47 108. Hyperion Bay WB 3.28 109. "Lost in the Bermuda Wangle" UPN 3.23 110. Clueless UPN 2.86 111. Between Brothers UPN 2.43 112.

Makxilm Eddie UPN 2.41 113. The Sentinel UPN 2.36 114. Diresta UPN 1.86 115. Legacy UPN 1.68 116. Love Boat The Next Wave UPN 1.61 i 3 ifj Fall 1999 Enrollment Cable Top 10 Mere are Nielsen's top 5 cable programs in prime time last week, also ranked by total For the first time in the 50-year history of The Actors Studio, the world-famous process that has earned its members more than 150 Oscar, Tony and Emmy Awards has been translated into a comprehensive, full-time three-year program designed and taught by professionals to produce professional actors, writers and directors ready to go to work in theater, film and television.

The curriculum includes: ACTING, under the direction of Sam Schacht, from Basic to Advanced, Sense Memory to Classics, Period and Style, every class taught by a viewers (in millions). TNT 6.79 TNT 6.54 TNT 5.89 USA 5.34 USA 4.46 1. Wrestling 9 p.m.) 2. Wrestling 10 p.m.) 3. Wrestling 8 p.m.) 4.

Wrestling (Sat. 9 p.m.) 5. Wrestling 7 p.m.) life-member of The Actors Studio PLAYWRITINC, under the direction of Romulus Linney DIRECTING, from Basic to Advanced, under the direction of Gene Lasko, Andreas Manolikakis and Stuart Vaughan THE ACTORS STUDIO CRAFT SEMINARS (seen on the Bravo Network as Inside The Actors Studio) Nat- View- Net- Vim-Program work en Program work era 1. ER NEJC 3192 eu ww-J 2. Friends NBC 27.70 3.

Frasier NBC 25.83 4. Jesse NBC 22.32 5. Touched by an Angel CBS 22.17 6. "The '60s," Pt 2 NBC 21.24 7. Veronica's Closet NBC 21.00 8.

60 Minutes CBS 20.69 9. "Storm of Century" ABC 19.42 10. "Deep in My Heart" CBS 18.74 i It. The Ore Carey Show ABC 16.91 tmmff- 12. The X-Files FOX 16.57 omm 13.

Providence NBC 15.82 14. "Murderat75 Bircti" CBS 15.44 15. JAG CSS 15.43 16. La SOrder NBC 15.29 17. ABC 15.28 18.

AllyMcBeal FOX 14.75 19. Evetyhody Loves Raymond CBS 14.53 Colm Feore 20. Home Improvement ABC 14.51 21. NYPD Blue ABC 14.50 62. Mad About You (Mon.) NBC 10.41 22.

Walker, Texas Ranger CBS 14.26 63. Turks CBS 10.31 23. Dateline NBC (Fri.) NBC 14.17 64. PartyolFrve FOX 10.27 24. Whose Line Is It Anyway? ABC 14.15 65.

U.S. Figure Skating Champ. ABC 10.10 25. 2020 (Fn.) ABC 14.00 66. "Funniest Rubs" CBS 10.09 26.

Two Guys, Giri, Pizza Place ABC 13.79 67. Suddenly Susan NBC 10.08 27. Law Order 9 p.m.) NBC 13.55 e8. World Wildest Police Videos FOX 9.99 28. Spin City ABC 13.17 69.

48 Hours CBS 9.97 29. 2020 (Wed.) ABC 12.99 70 Chicago Hope CBS 9.92 30. "When-Good Times Go Bad 2" FOX 12.98 71 The Pretender NBC 9.84 31. Sabnna, the Teenage Witch ABC 12.79 "Courage Under F.re" ABC 9.61 32. Dateline NBC (Tue.) NBC 12.70 Amencals Wamed fox 9.52 31 Becke' CBS 12.63 Beverly Hills, 90210 FOX 9.52 34.

rung of Queens CBS 2.58 35. 7th Heaven WB 12.51 36. just Shoot Me NBC 12.42 37. The Simpsons FOX 1235 f' 38. 2020 (Men.) ABC 12.29 7' 39.

NashBndges CBS 12.24 79' F0X 40. "To Serve and Protect," Ft 1 NBC 12.18 80 3rd Rock From the Sun NBC 8.54 41. Martial Law CBS 12.15 81 Melrose Place FOX 8 42 42. Will a Grace NBC 12.09 King of the Hill FOX 8.05 43 Diagnosis Murder CBS 12.00 M. World's Funmestl FOX 7.92 44 CBS 11.89 "Dolphins: The Wild Side" NBC 7.88 46.

The Hughleys ABC 1182 85. Vengeance Unlimited ABC 7.49 46. Brother's Keeper ABC 11.56 86. "A Valentine Winnie the Pooh" ABC 6.94 47. Kids Say Damdest Things CBS 11.51 87.

Dawson's Creek WB 6.84 48. Dateline NBC (Wed.) NBC 11.47 88 Millennium FOX 6.52 49. 60 Minutes II CBS 11.42 89 Buffy, the Vampire Slayer WB 6.09 50. Boy Meets World ABC 11.41 90 Charmed WB 5 66 51. "Cinderella" ABC 11 37 91.

Star Trek: Voyager UPN 5 61 That'70sShow FOX 11.37 92. ABC News: Crime Justice" ABC 557 53. Candid Camera CBS 10.96 93. Cupid ABC 5 49 54. Two Ola Kind ABC 10.88 94.

Smart Guy WB 5.40 55. Early Edition CBS 10 85 95. Bnmstone FOX 5 15 56 Guinness World Records FOX 10 77 96 Sister, Sister WB 4 88 57. Homicide: Life on the Street NBC 10.72 97. felicity WB 4 63 58.

Sports Night ABC 10 62 98 Zoe, Duncan. Jack Jane WB 4 32 59 A Doctors CBS 10 61 7th Heaven Beginnings WB 4 32 60. Dateline NBC (Sun.) NBC 10 57 I00 The Jamie Foxx Show WB 4 30 61. Cops (8:30 FOX 10 55 10! The Steve Harvey Show WB 4 15 Network Averages Here is the number of viewers that each network averaged pei hour of prime time, for last week and for the season. Last Sanaa week to date NBC 14.43 million 12.68 CBS 13.49 13.23 ABC 11.76 12.05 FOX 10.15 11.36 WB 5.52 4.62 UPN 2.99 2.74 SCENIC, LIGHTING AND COSTUME DESIGN for directors, under the direction of Tony Walton, lules Fisher, Peggy Eisenhauer and William Ivey Long SPEECH AND VOICE PRODUCTION, under the direction of Dr.

Gwen Korovin and William Riley MOVEMENT, taught by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center, and Alexander Technique THEATER HISTORY, from Greek and Roman works, through the classics, to the most advanced worb of the 20th century. THE REPERTORY SEASON This unique feature of The Actors Studio MFA, which is produced in our own theater, presents to the public and the professional community our graduating actors, writers and directors in a season of the works they have created during their three years in the program. AUDITIONS BEING HELD IN LA. For information application, call 212-229-5859. Southland Viewing Here are Nielsen's top 5 prime-time programs in the Los Angeles area during the same week.

The rankings are based on the number of households watching. 1 www.newschool.eduacademicdramaindex.html Application deadline: April 15, 1999 Program KNBC 1,160,533 KNBC 1.119,452 KNBC 1.078,371 Frasier Fnends ER Jesse Close 970,534 837021 KNBC KNBC 60 teBRIJAR? 1 ft: 1 )99 I 'ANGELES TIMES WEEKEND.