Magical. That’s the word I would use to describe the week I got to have at the top of May. During a week-long trip, I got to stay at an inn owned by one of my favorite authors and get some signed books, had the honor of my play Like Kissing Moonlight kick off the first-ever Hudson Valley Theatre Festival, visit with two long-time friends, reconnect two people who hadn’t seen each other in years, and eat the best pea soup I’ve ever had.
My husband and I took a week-long trip to the beautiful Hudson Valley and the charming towns of Poughkeepsie, Kingston, and Rhinebeck. My play was chosen as one of twelve to be produced out of over 100 submissions from around the world to be presented by the New Deal Creative Arts Center as part of their first new playwrights’ competition.
We opted to drive, as we’d both never been to that part of the country. We took our time doing it rather than blasting through the nearly 11-hour drive. The first part of the journey was one we knew very well from years of taking our youngest back and forth to college in the DC area. The drive along the 81 through the Shenandoah Valley is one of the prettiest around and we always enjoy it. I made a personal note to visit Luray Caverns at some point in the coming year. I do love a cave.
Our first night was a long-wished for treat, a stay at Inn Boonesboro, a delightful bed and breakfast with themed rooms of famous couples in the tiny town of Boonesboro, MD. If you’re an avid Nora Roberts fan, you’ll know the place from her trilogy set in the place as its renovated. I was over the moon to see the (haunted!) inn itself with its eight themed bedrooms, library, and courtyard. Across the street is the pizzeria featured in the books and a wonderful bookshop called “Turn the Page,” which features Nora’s books, and if you order ahead of time, she’ll sign them for free. She just lives in the next town over, so they bring the books to her periodically. I am now the proud possessor of five signed books, which is making a dent in our task of replacing all the books (over 800) we lost in the fire seven years ago. I also was able to leave one of my very favorite writers a card letting her know how much she meant to me over the years as both a reader of her books and as a writer myself with the friendly staff of the bookshop. That felt good.
The inn is an utter delight and met all my expectations after re-reading the books for the third time prior to our visit. We stayed in Jane and Rochester, which featured a huge, canopied king bed that you needed stairs to climb into, a fainting couch, heated floors in the bathroom and a huge copper tub, along with heather-scented amenities, fresh flowers, and framed doilies that belonged to Nora’s mother. At the little wine and charcuterie the inn puts out in the evening, we met the only other guests that night, a Canadian couple there celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary, and spent a couple of hours laughing and talking with them.
I also got some writing done on my latest book in the library with a cozy fireplace in the afternoon, and also on the next morning that giant bed, propped up with pillows and fortified by delicious coffee. Sometimes the writer life is magical, and this was one of those moments.
Another of those magical moments came Friday evening in the shape of the professional, fantastic staged reading of my play. The New Deal Creative Arts Center board and their delightful artistic director, Teresa Gasparini, did an outstanding job of sifting through over 100 submissions and presenting 12 very different new plays over the course of the weekend at various venues around the Hudson Valley, bringing art and community together. As I told Ron, the head of their board, at the fun final party all of the shows were so professionally presented, they could brand their theatre company as “Broadway North.” I got to meet another wonderful, generous playwright, Jeff Roda, Teresa, and a few of the New Deal board members, Krista, Nick, and Crystal, just before my play went up, and oh my, what lovely people they are.
I held my breath, and my fingers shook with nerves as director Kevin Barnes and eight actors, all dressed in black, but with hints of their characters in their accessories—a priest’s collar for Pastor Bob, goth makeup for June, a medicine woman-type necklace for Euphazine—took the stage backed by a projection of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The moment the piece began, those nerves were replaced with joy, and I teared up as the reading of my beautiful play began, and the director gently touched the wind chimes he’d attached to his podium and read the opening stage directions. The audience was captivated and laughed in all the right places. They were moved by the piece, too, which is, for me, the biggest compliment I can hear.
I love community theatre for a variety of reasons, the first of which is that the people who do it are there with their whole hearts (because it ain’t for the money, that’s for sure). Secondly, the people who participate might have years of experience in theatre, or in the case of the lovely gal playing the leading role of Berry in this production, this could be their very first time doing a show. I love that community theatre gives people a place to stretch their creativity and have fun! These actors took my breath away as they poured themselves into a wonderful two hours that captivated the audience. It was a joy through and through. Kudos to the wonderful cast and to Kevin, who saw straight through to the core of love of family which lives at the center of Like Kissing Moonlight. What an honor to have my words find life with you. If you’re in the area, I’d urge you to go see a production by this wonderful group. Here is their website: https://www.newdealarts.org
The rest of the weekend was filled to the brim. We went to the CIA, which is not, as I first assumed, the CIA that runs covert ops in other countries, but the Culinary Institute of America, which has a stunning campus on the banks of the Hudson River. You can eat at one of their restaurants if you can score a reservation (I advise planning a month in advance). I got one at American Bounty for lunch. The surroundings are like eating in a library, the service excellent, and the food superb. This pea soup with its little floating nest is in the top five things I’ve ever eaten in my life.
Both my husband and I love history, so a stop at the FDR Presidential Library was a must. We’ll have to go back as not only is the library extensive, there are also a house and grounds we didn’t have time to see.
And then the best, and most magical part of our trip – reconnecting with dear friends who live in or (somewhat) near the area. First up was my college friend, Michael, who hosted us for lunch at his lovely home with his husband Robb and their sweet rescue dog, Iris. During the course of six hours chatting and reminiscing, we learned that Robb once knew another friend of mine, Sandra, from years ago working at Anne Klein II in NYC, but that they’d lost touch. Of course, I had to get Sandra on the phone right away and reconnect them!
I mean, what are the odds of that happening? Magical, right?
After our lunch, Michael took us on a walking tour of Bard’s captivating campus where he’s a dean. Reconnecting with Michael after a long break and seeing the beautiful life he’s created for himself meant so much to me. He’s an author, too. I got him to sign his wonderful book, Men I’ve Never Been*, for me that I picked up in the local indie bookstore in Rhinebeck. Make that a score of 6 signed books for the weekend.
I need to mention another magical moment before I go further. Another friend from Northwestern, David Simpatico, was also one of the playwrights celebrated at the festival. His play, Ex-Gay Bar, about gay conversion therapy was moving and powerful, and again, the actors and director did a fantastic job of presenting a robust, personal piece of theatre. David is the one who let me know about the New Deal contest, so really all of the magic that happened at the beginning of May was the result of his thoughtfulness. I didn’t get to see him in person, as he was down in Sarasota at Asolo Repertory Theatre as his newest work debuted, a musical adaptation of the play, “Twelve Angry Men.” David wrote the script for it, Michael Holland the music and lyrics. It’s getting rave reviews. You might know David for another little work he created, “High School Musical.” Here’s an insider bit of trivia… the team in the musical is the Wildcats… same as Northwestern’s team. Now you know where it came from!
The final bit of magic came in the form of my dear friends Sandra and Joe, who drove up from NYC on a rainy Sunday morning to join us for brunch at the cozy, dark wooded taproom of the Beekman Arms Inn, which has been continuously serving up meals since 1766. Geo Washington not only slept there, he ate there, too!
I met Sandra years ago when our sons were both very little when we both worked for a time at Star Trek: Voyager. We became fast friends and raised our kids together when we both lived in LA, going to the zoo, the trains, the dinosaur museum, and we worked in Arbonne together too. She’s a wonderful soul, as is her husband, Joe. It had been forever since we were last together in person, and our time together flew by far too quickly.
Magic comes in many forms: A magical evening of theatre, the magic of seeing my words that were created in solitude brought to life by a theatre company bursting with talent, people trying out new things like stepping into a theatre role with great success, a wonderful meal, a beautiful place; but for me, it’s the magic of friendships that endure that tops the list. I’m a #luckygal to have so many of them.
*Get Michael’s book here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B091J6KQCZ
