JAMMIN'
WITH JACK
By
JOSLYN YANG
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Maryam
Hassan of Rockaway cried when she auditioned for Tomika.
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October 4, 2003 --
To the kids who star with him in "School of Rock," Jack
Black is, well, a loser.
"He played sticks [a kind of finger game] with
us on the set a lot," says 12-year-old Brian Falduto.
"We always beat him!"
In the comedy, opening today, Black plays Dewey
Finn, a rocker who's fired from his band. To pay the rent, he
intercepts a call from his roommate - and ends up as a fifth-grade
substitute teacher.
After hearing his pupils perform in an orchestra
class, Dewey's inspired: The kids might help him win a band contest -
and loads of cash.
Pretty soon, Dewey's students - including the
chubby, insecure Tomika (Maryam Hassan), a nerdy keyboard player
(Robert Tsai) and the Liza Minnelli-loving Billy, who becomes the
group's stylist (Brian) - are taking lessons in Rock 101.
Since several thousand kids across the country
auditioned for "School of Rock," being cast was especially sweet.
Ten-year-old Maryam of Rockaway learned about the
auditions through the Internet. She and her mom drove into the city
for an open casting call and Maryam belted out a song from "Dreamgirls."
Though she says she wasn't nervous, the second
grader got emotional when she realized Tomika was a plus-size girl
like herself, who never thought she'd get a chance to be a singer.
"She told me she actually cried when she read
the lines," Maryam's mom, Cadeejah Daniels, tells The Post.
"I realized what really bothered her deep
inside. She used to go through so much because she's a big girl."
Now that her classmates know Maryam's been in the
movies, her mom adds, they've been a lot nicer to her.
Brian, who lives in Pequannock, N.J., hadn't acted
professionally before, either.
"I was really nervous for the auditions,"
Brian says. "I put on an angel pin that I wear for all my
auditions. It made me feel much calmer."
Like the others, Brian was asked to read a few
lines, improvise a bit and even sing. After three call-backs, he
finally got the part.
As happy as he was, he says he had no idea who Jack
Black was when the "Shallow Hal" star stepped on the set.
"All the other kids were running after him and
getting his autograph," Brian recalls with a laugh. "I was
asking, 'Why are you getting his autograph?' Then I heard he was
famous." That's when Brian asked for an autograph, too.
He says he and the other kids bonded with the
34-year-old comedian fairly quickly.
"Jack acted like a kid," Brian says.
"We played games and music every day. It was a lot of fun on the set."
When the nearly five-month shoot ended, the crew
threw the kids in the cast a farewell wrap party.
"All the moms and kids were crying. It was a
really sad day," Brian recalls.
"But Jack didn't cry. He has done this a
million times, so he's used to it."
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