Every day is opening night.

“A Night We’ll Never Forget”


Designer Rachel Antonoff yucks it up with producer John Johnson at Gallow Green.

 

Ladies and Gents,

As anyone who’s experienced the theatrical sensation Sleep No More can attest, one shouldn’t check into the McKittrick Hotel seeking a relaxing stay. No, you will chase, be chased, witness murders, run up and down stairs, and quite possibility get super freaked out a few times in the process. So what a lovely treat is it to have a chic rooftop oasis to kick back with libations and divine eats just a few flights up from all the Macbethian mayhem going on below. Thursday marked the official opening of this new rooftop venue, called Gallow Green (though New York’s most “in-the-know” drinkers have been packing the place for a couple months now), perched atop the McKittrick. The crowd was a cross section of nightlife hipsters, fashionistas, theatricals and media types, all indulging in the Julia Jaksic-designed menu and the punch heavy cocktail list created by the legendary David Wondrich. A brass band played and characters intermingled with patrons, adding a very specific kind of Punchdrunk “streetmosphere” to the mix. Come for the sexy crowd, stay for the killer views, and leave after your second punchbowl of booze! Which is exactly what I did, so I could make it uptown in time for the listening party for the premiere cast recording of Carrie.

Most Off-Broadway cast recordings enter the marketplace with little fanfare, but Carrie is not most Off-Broadway cast recordings. The theater world has twenty-five long years to get their hands on the music from this (in)famous page-to-screen-to-stage adaptation about the world’s most terrifying prom queen. And, so, the cast of the much talked-about MCC revival – lead by stars Molly Ranson and Marin Mazzie — and about a hundred of their closest friends crowded into 54 Below for a “listening party” to celebrate the album’s release. At first no one knew whether to mingle or stay silent, but soon the crowd got into a comfortable rhythm that allowed for casual socializing and occasionally shutting-up to hear some particularly breathtaking vocal fireworks. For some particularly enthusiastic (read: drunk) guests, the evening became a sing-along. While I always appreciate an enthusiastic crowd, frankly I wish these particular song birds had left the singing to the professionals — but I shall have plenty of time to listen to the album in the privacy (and silence) of my own home now that I have my very own copy!

Tidbits from around town…

Caught First Lady of New York State, Sandra Lee, exiting a spin class near Columbus Circle.

Witnessed Late Night funnymen David Letterman and Jon Stewart chatting while waiting for their respective cars at a parking garage in Tribeca. (Thankfully, their airings don’t overlap!)

Overheard Sharon Osbourne consoling an “America’s Got Talent” finalist by explaining, “it’s not about who wins. The losers always end up being more successful than the winners anyway!”

Finally, a belated-but-heartfelt congratulations to newlyweds Jordan Roth and Richie Jackson! I hear it was “the wedding of the decade” and theirs is certainly a union for the ages!

As always, a toast of something sparkling to you and yours!

Kisses,

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