“I’ve wanted to meet you for 20 years.”
First words out of my mouth tonight as I was introduced to Bebe Neuwirth.
I loved “Cheers” and her character of Lilith. I remember watching the show with my Mom and Dad and just laughing along with that unforgettable cast of characters.
Tonight, she was one of the stars at a benefit for the Actors Fund. It was held on an estate in Englewood, New Jersey, where the actress Gloria Swanson lived in the 1930s. The Actors Fund operates an assisted living center and nursing home in Englewood, which I visited earlier in the day. A beautiful place where anyone who worked in the performing arts…from actors to stage hands…can find a home in their later years.
I also interviewed (and met for the first time) Brian Stokes Mitchell and it unexpectedly led to a great conversation between us about the meaning and impact of art on our lives. He’s returning to Broadway to star in “Women On The Verge of Nervous Breakdown” at Lincoln Center along with Patti LuPone and de’Adre Aziza. (I interviewed de’Adre for ON THE SCENE when she was Tony nominated for her last Broadway show, “Passing Strange.” She should have won.)
Besides the two Broadway veterans (Mitchell and Neuwirth) I spent a couple of minutes talking with Hunter Ryan Herdlicka who is 23 years old, fresh out of college, who landed a role in “A Little Night Music” on Broadway…his first Broadway audition, he said, amazingly enough.
What an interesting night, it’s why I love what I do, and I hope it’s the beginning of more interviews and conversations with these incredible talents.
