A hit at Fenway

By Mark Shanahan and Paysha Rhone , Globe Staff  |  October 15, 2008

Foxborough's Joanna "JoJo" Levesque was at Fenway last night, performing the national anthem before Game 4 of the ALCS. The 17-year-old singer and actress is an enormous sports fan. Play ball!

Mark Wahlberg has long said he's ready to settle down with his girlfriend, Rhea Durham, but now he's setting a date. "We're talking about August," Wahlberg told People this week. But don't get excited, Boston - there's no word on whether the wedding will be here. "It will be in the Catholic Church somewhere," is all Wahlberg would say. The couple, looking glamorous at the "Max Payne" premiere Monday, have three kids - 5-year-old Ella Rae, 2-year-old Michael, and newborn Brendan Joseph. Wahlberg said he hopes for more - "however many Mom wants to have."

Thayer Academy has enlisted the famous father of one of its students to sing at this weekend's opening of the school's new Center for the Arts. None other than Steven Tyler, whose son Taj Tallarico attends Thayer, will sing at Saturday's gala celebration. (The Aerosmith screamer will perform with daughter Chelsea Tallarico, who graduated from Thayer last year.) "[Tyler] has been really supportive of the arts program, and very gracious, and generous to be part of the opening," said school spokesman Dave Casanave. But don't bother trying to get a ticket. The fund-raiser is sold out, with tables selling for $10,000 a piece. Tyler, whose world-famous rock band is on hiatus, will be accompanied on at least one tune by the Atlantic Symphony Orchestra.

It'll be a long time before Tom Brady's back on the football field. TMZ.com says it spied the Pats QB at the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Clinic in LA yesterday and he was confined to a wheelchair. Ouch. Brady, who tore his ACL and MCL in the first game of the season, went under the knife last week. According to TMZ, Brady was wheeling around with his leg up in the chair, and he didn't look particularly pleased. It is expected to take No. 12 up to eight months to recover.

Former Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey and her husband, Sean, will receive Wellspring House's Human Spirit Award today for their work on social justice and homeless issues. The award will be presented by another former number two, Tom O'Neill, at the anti-poverty agency's Under One Roof Gala at the Cyclorama. Kerry Healey is also on her way to Afghanistan soon to work on justice reform with the State Department.

Opera star Jessye Norman was in the audience for the final performance of Anna Deavere Smith's "Let Me Down Easy" at the American Repertory Theatre on Monday night. (The Grammy-winning soprano is a character in the play.) Norman was one of numerous nabobs who saw the show during its run, including theologian James Cone, Harvard's Rev. Peter Gomes and prof Elaine Scarry, jockey Gabriel Saez, actresses Julie Andrews and Lauren Bacall, and choreographer Elizabeth Streb.

Celeb stylist David Evangelista was readying to join Channel 7 anchor Frances Rivera last night in hosting the R.O.S.E. Fund Award Celebration and honoring two women who survived domestic abuse - Jean Decker and Ruth Deras. The nonprofit organization helps women rebuild their lives by funding facial reconstructive surgeries and scholarships. "They're survivors and they made it out," said Evangelista, before the Fairmont Copley Plaza soiree. "I work with women all day long, so this was a natural yes to me." The stylist and New York salon owner, known for his work on "The Rosie O'Donnell Show" and for beautifying stars such as Eva Longoria Parker, Julia Stiles, and Hilary Swank, said it sounds cliche, but women really do confide in their hairdressers. And over the years, he's heard plenty of stories of mental and physical abuse. "I've had clients who have gone through this," he said. His advice: Get out now. "I'm one to speak my mind," he said. "And women have listened to me. I'm all about girl power."

Names can be reached at names@globe.com or at 617-929-8253.