Everyone has to get their start somewhere -- even New York City jazz singers. But for anyone who heard jazz vocalist Catherine Dupuis sing at the 36th annual Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts this summer, it's hard to imagine that in her early days she sang commercial jingles in State College for places like The Waffle Shop and Tubbies Water Works.

Dupuis will be back in State College Sunday, and while she might eat at the Waffle Shop, she won't be singing there. Dupuis' trip this time is for a benefit concert she helped organize at The American Ale House and Grill, 821 Cricklewood Dr., to raise money for the renovations of Friedman State Theatre, 128 W. College Ave.

The theater shut down in April 2001, after Carmike Cinemas closed some of its locations across the country.

It was at that time that community members decided that keeping the historic theater closed would be a waste of the theatrical space, which had been open since 1938.

The renovation of the building is expected to be finished in the fall of 2003. It will then play host to performances by community dance companies, musicians, and schools. But before that can happen, over $2 million needs to be raised to complete the project.

"When I grew up in State College there were no performing spaces besides the high school, and that auditorium was already used a lot, or to use a church. I spent my summers at the Boal Barn [Playhouse], but once it got cold we couldn't use it anymore," Dupuis said. "When I got wind [of the project] from [Friedman State Theatre, Inc. president] Mike Negra, and I found out how dedicated they were, I said, 'This really needs to happen.'"

And now Dupuis is doing her part to help.

Sunday's program will include three sets beginning at 1 p.m., followed by sets at 2:30 and 4 p.m. Admission is $20 for the jazz-brunch benefit, and all money will be donated to the restoration project. The Alehouse recommends that anyone who wants to attend the event make reservations.

"If you really want to hear a great group with a terrific singer that you would go hear at a classy joint in New York where you'd have to pay a cover, this is really something to see," said Tommy Wareham, Dupuis' long-time friend and fellow musician.

Wareham will also be one of the musicians accompanying Dupuis at the benefit concert.

Wareham plays the piano regularly at The Alehouse, but he will be strumming his guitar this weekend to help at the event.

Dupuis will also be bringing with her the Russ Kassoff Trio, which includes Russ Kassoff on piano, Bob Bowen on bass, and Rick Cutler on drums. Cutler has worked with Gregory Hines, while Kassoff played with Frank Sinatra for 10 years.

"I am so grateful for the musicians that are willing to come out. Like me they feel strongly that we need performance spaces to bring communities together," Dupuis said. "Things have changed from when I grew up. Places have grown so quickly, but there doesn't seem to be so much cohesion. Pulling a town together is very important. I saw that last year in New York. We are all New York City and we pulled together to help people get through it. A place like this will help the community thrive and stay knit together."

State College residents attending the event will also get a chance to hear some songs Dupuis has never sung in this area before.

"What folks haven't heard at home is what I do in New York ... my difficult arrangements," Dupuis said.

Dupuis has been involved in music and theatre from the time she started playing piano in second grade.

By the time she was a fifth grader at Park Forest Elementary School, her music teacher decided she needed a challenge, and asked her to be a piano accompanist for the school's Christmas pageant.

Her love of music continued from there. She stayed involved in both theater and music in high school and decided to go to Indiana University to get her bachelor's degree in music and theatre.

She returned to State College after graduation and started taking graduate classes at Penn State. It was there that she got her master's degree in acting and movement.

While in State College, Dupuis also sang with Wareham's father in his band, in addition to singing with Wareham himself.

"I met her at Toftrees. We would talk music, and eventually she sat in with me," Wareham said. "Then she moved to New York, and I realized how serious she was about the music business."

But moving to New York wasn't always the plan.

"I never wanted to move to New York," Dupuis said. "I was seriously considering going to Chicago. But I had a couple of very good friends who got me drunk at a party, convinced me to go and they held me to it. I told them I would come for a year. But once I was there, as was wisely told to me, you really must come for five years to see what you want. Once you make the investment in the town, the town will make its investment in you, and you will never want to leave."

New York City has done just that for Dupuis. She has released two albums since being in New York. Her first, I Hear Music, was released in 1999. Her follow-up album, Moments, was released in May 2001.

Dupuis and Wareham are both excited about the benefit Sunday and about being able to do their parts to help with the theater renovations.

"For anybody who wants to see State College develop ... this is going to be a real local project to take pride in," Wareham said.

As for Dupuis, there is a personal part of her that can't wait to see the theatre reopen again. "I secretly hope that there is a way I can put together a jazz festival and bring it to town," Dupuis said.