CMW Takes a Bite Out of the Big Apple!
Well November has been quite the month of traveling for me! After an awesome trip to New Orleans at the beginning of the month, I spent last week in New York City.
I headed to the Big Apple with Jim and Denice for a CMW Alumnae Gathering. What an awesome night! Blair and Stirling Cassidy Smith graciously opened their home to host an outstanding evening. Close to 60 Merrie-Woode alumnae enjoyed reconnecting with old camp friends, meeting new Merrie-Woode friends, telling camp stories, and singing camp songs. We had s’mores and before the evening was out everyone ended up around the fireplace, singing camp songs while Jim accompanied on the guitar. It was truly a terrific night. It was great to see camp friendships rekindled and awesome to see people realize just how many other Merrie-Woode girls are in the city right now. We heard several people talking about continuing to get together from time to time and carry on the Merrie-Woode camaraderie.
Before heading back to the mountains, we took some time to enjoy the city for a little while. Jim and Denice stayed an extra day, but I decided I needed a few to see as many Broadway shows as possible! After all, the eternal theatre student was in the mecca of theatre! We had a lovely time Wednesday morning exploring The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Denice made a beeline to European paintings of the Renaissance, while Jim enjoyed wandering through an exhibit on Korean armor, and I anxiously made my way to find the Picassos. After a few hours, we all met back up for a quick lunch at Sardi’s before catching a couple of Broadway shows. It was a two-show-day on Wednesday! Jim and Denice saw Jersey Boys and The Book of Mormon…they both said Jersey Boys was their favorite! Meanwhile, I was off to see Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen in Waiting For Godot and a new revival of Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie. (It was brilliant, by the way. If you’re in NYC, go see The Glass Menagerie now!) We all met back up that night after our last show for a slice of New York City cheesecake at Junior’s near Times Square.
Jim and Denice left the next morning to fly back to Carolina, so I was on my own Thursday and Friday. But I enjoyed wandering the city by day and seeing plays by night. I caught an awesome exhibit on children’s books at the New York City Public Library. Those of you who were following my NYC adventures on Facebook and Twitter saw that on display was the original Winnie the Pooh stuffed bear! I thought all previous inhabitants of Pooh Corner would be envious. I spent a good amount of time in the Drama Book Shop, a store with nothing but plays and books on all things theatrical! Those of you who know me will wonder how I didn’t find a way to just move in. The answer is I had tickets to see Peter and the Starcatcher that night and had to mosey on if I was going to make curtain! I did find lots of potential Directing Project scripts for future summers before I left though! And Peter and the Starcatcher would make an awesome play in Castle one summer! I explored the Guggenheim, the J.P. Morgan Library, and the Museum of the City of New York…took a stroll through Central Park…and found time to see a new production of Macbeth at Lincoln Center. (I am proud to say that I actually liked some of the artistic choices made by King’s Player, Rachel Rich, in her Directing Project last summer more than I did in this version.) But all in all, a great week of theatre! And a great week in the city! But by the time I flew back home, this Broadway baby was happy to be back in her Carolina mountains!
I’m headed out of town again next week…home for Thanksgiving with the family in Florida! So the marathon month of travel continues…Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
–Lindsay