Every day is opening night.

Ladies and gents,

Last week, I tickled your collective derrière with a feather all about Thursday night’s opening of Ain’t Too Proud.  Well, after all that, I realized I didn’t even have a ticket to the opening night performance.  So I did what any 21st century public figure would do: got on Twitter and begged for a single.  I didn’t get one (I’ve already seen the show five times, and can do most of the choreography by heart). I did, however, manage to score a party pass.  I wish I could tell you all about it, but I was told all party gossip was on a strict embargo thanks to a Page Six exclusive to come.  Oh, that Ian Mohr, beating me at my own game once again!

This week, I did manage to get a ticket to the American Theatre Wing’s 22nd annual Jonathan Larson Grants, held at WNYC’s Greene Space.   Wing president Heather Hitchens and Julie Larson (sister of Jonathan) presented the $10,000 grants to this year’s crop of recipients, including the team of Julia Gytri and Avi Amon (Salonika), Emily Gardner Xu Hall (Untitled Cherry Orchard Musical), Andy Roninson (the musical podcast Take a Ten), and Ben Wexler (Washington Square). Daphne Rubin-Vega, Anthony Rapp, and Katrina Lenk were on hand to perform song selections from the recipients’ shows.

And speaking of young talent, I also attended the 5th Annual Shubert Foundation High School Theatre Festival at the Music Box Theatre.  My longtime crush Christopher Silbert (I’m “not [his] type”) hosted the event, at which local high school thesps are given the change to make their Broadway debuts with a series of performances.  Among the shows the little tykes performed this year were The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee; A Christmas Carol; Caroline, or Change; Runaways; and The Sound of Music.

In addition to playing the famed Music Box stage, the youngsters also got to rub elbows with some theatrical luminaries.  The starry list of presenters included Joe Iconis, Lisa Brescia, Isabelle McCalla, Tony Award® winner Tonya Pinkins, Lauren Ridloff, and Christina Sajous.

Oh to be young, talented, and full of collagen again!

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

Kisses,

Photo credit: Jennifer Broski (Broadway World)