Castle Steps
“Star or no star, I was forever his star”
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Cinderella’s Castle Ahead!
Out of the above, broken-down brownstone — my first “home” in NYC — the women of the RC have shown what a little collective creativity can achieve! Former residents of the RC are now putting the finishing touches to our memoir book to be published in December by Bear Manor Media. I may be doing the grunt work to make it all happen (thank you PBW&T & all those years creating briefs for the courts of NY!), however without all our women in support, this would NOT be happening. TRC Incorporation has created a bit of a schism at this …
Coming Back, Baby!
There is something renewing about a sunset. Brilliant colors reminding us of God’s natural beauty. Are we, as a nation, “coming back?” My optimistic nature doubts our ever returning to “normal.” I felt this way after the Aids Epidemic hit all our dancer friends. And I have to say, I was one of those “fearful” friends. My husband visited their bedside. He made sure he was walking in those AidsWalks while I held down the fort with two infant girls. We ALL walked the walk in later years, proud of our Broadway community rising up against a government that had …
Summer Lovin . . .
Why does this summer seem like the calm before the storm? Tomorrow is supposed to be complete chaos in the City with the Gay Pride Parade — which we plan to attend. Gotta do it. Gotta show up for equal rights. Gotta keep the faith that America is still the land of the free. Do you ever get Letters From the Universe? And keep them to remind you anything is still possible? I do. Here’s one: Having a dream . . . Courage Visualizing your dream . . . Persistence Physically moving towards your dream . . . Guts Letting …
Sweet (20)16 Coming Out Party!
Did you ever have a Sweet Sixteen “Coming Out” Party? I never did. Both my daughters were Bas Mitzvah’d — which entailed huge parties for families and friends. In the Jewish tradition, the event signifies the transition of a child becoming an adult at age thirteen. I remember also attending a Christian friend’s Sweet Sixteen party for their daughter. The family made a similarly mammoth gathering, presenting a pair of high heels ceremoniously to their daughter who had now become a full-fledged woman upon reaching the age of sixteen. So why would I be viewing this year of 2016 at …
Dancer Discipline
The 2015 Stars & Strikes for Autism bowling event raised $14,000 and I surprisingly got my groove back! Each strike elicited squeals from not only me, but from the fans who actually still remember all of us and were lined up watching. The event, spearheaded by Jerry VerDorn and Liz Keifer, also served as a reunion for my Guiding Light peers, many of whom I didn’t even have story with, however, because we shared the same studio, the same “stardust,” they are and will forever be, my friends for life. Amazing the power of television. Real life vs reel life. Focus …
Grace Under Pressure
Dorothy Parker to Ernest Hemingway: “What exactly do you mean by guts?” Hemingway: “I mean grace under pressure.” In Sports Illustrated article, “Exit Stage Center,” on Derek Jeter by Tom Verducci, Jeter states “I think part of that is focus. So is work ethic. You do things over and over again, and when you get in a situation you like to think it comes natural.” Over the years, Jeter has walked the walk of his belief and stands now as someone who must have done the right thing. In my personal world, the discipline of a dancer falls under the …
Inspiration
The call from a neighbor to my office asked, “Could you come home early? There’s been a fire in your apartment and Steve needs you.” I just thought Steve tried to light the pilot light in the oven & something blew. When I got home, however, it seemed like everyone in our apartment building was in my apartment helping clear the debris from a fire. A real fire. I mean fire engines/911/& a completely gutted, black bedroom. The story goes that my Sir Galahad of a husband entered our apartment via the upstairs balcony in the middle of a raging …
Circle of Friends
With the aid of social networking, the gypsy world of theater/film/tv, and even the cyber-coffee conversations on Twitter, it seems everyone’s circle of friends has widened. In spite of the many celebrations we’re able to intimately share, with age I’m sadly watching my more intimate circle of friends — those who’s light and laughter sparkles in my mind long after our physical visits together — diminish. How do most of us process the loss? Is there a lesson for those of us left behind? The Big C was one of my favorite series. Laura Linney and those writers made me …
Dancing on the Edge
“Mom! You’re robbing the cradle!”Such were the comments from my children when my husband choreographed the opening number to “Fine Romance” for the Ridgefield Chorale a few years ago (note the hair?). I think it was around 2012 when I was paired with Morton Shendler Jensen, Owner of Fred Astraire Dance Studios in Ridgefield, CT.Once a dancer, always a dancer. When I think about it, as a modern dancer, I always preferred telling a story thru dance. While in college at the North Carolina School for the Arts, I danced in Job Saunder’s “Summernight” which told the story of various small town residents; and later danced in Valerie Bettis’ …