DETROIT - Scandal-plagued Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has changed course and acknowledges he probably did wear a red dress with a plunging neckline in a middle school play.

Earlier, Mr. Kilpatrick's staff took aim at a Washington newspaper that published a photo purportedly showing the young mayor-to-be in the dress.

The Hill identified Mr. Kilpatrick as being one of eight boys wearing wigs and dresses in a grainy, color photo of a 1984 performance of Little Annie at Dwight Rich Middle School in Lansing.

Kilpatrick spokesman Denise Tolliver originally denied that Mr. Kilpatrick was among those in the photo. Ms. Tolliver said she showed the photo to Mr. Kilpatrick and he said the boy wasn't him.

But yesterday, Mr. Kilpatrick said the evidence shows he's probably the one in the dress.

Mr. Kilpatrick told the Detroit News he still doesn't remember appearing in the play but doesn't dispute the recollections of director Michael Crabb, whom he called his favorite teacher.

The mayor said Mr. Crabb told him by telephone that Mr. Kilpatrick and other student athletes donned dresses to play Annie's mothers.

Mr. Kilpatrick said he has appeared in many musicals and plays over the years.

"I can really sing and I can really act and that is something that people probably don't know," the mayor said.

Mr. Kilpatrick and former Chief of Staff Christine Beatty face perjury, obstruction of justice, and other charges. They are accused of lying under oath at a whistle-blowers' trial during the summer when they denied being romantically involved.

First Published May 9, 2008, 10:16 a.m.