So it was natural for the Staples Players director to choose “Merrily We Roll Along” as the spring 2003 production.
Former media teacher Jim Honeycutt taped it — and all of Roth’s shows.
This week, in our chronological look back at highlights of past productions, we bring you that memorable “Merrily.” Click here or below to see.
PS: This year’s spring show — “Urinetown” — debuts Thursday (March 12, 7 p.m.). It runs Friday and Saturday (March 13 and 14) at 7 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday (March 14 and 15) at 2 p.m. Click here for tickets, and more information.
Yesterday’s stunning weather (and extra hour of daylight) turned many Westporters’ thoughts to the outdoors.
Including activities like dining al fresco.
Tomorrow (Wednesday, 9 a.m., Town Hall auditorium), the Board of Selectpersons will be asked to approve a request from the Westport Downtown Association for the annual temporary closure of Church Lane between Elm Street and Post Road East, for outdoor dining (and music).
The street would be closed to all but emergency traffic from May 8 to October 1. Musicians would entertain on Fridays and Saturdays (5:30 to 9 p.m.), from June 5 to September 26.
In a WDA survey last year, respondents were asked if the Church Lane closure is a benefit to the town, and something that should be continued.
2,033 — that’s 92.2% — said yes. 171 (7.8%) said no.
This would be the 7th year for the street closure and outdoor dining downtown. The tradition began during the pandemic.
Outdoor dining at Spotted Horse. (Photo/John Videler for Videler Photography)
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Speaking of eating: Foodies collect many things: recipes, cooking equipment, leftovers .
They also collect books.
Cookbooks, non-fiction, food memoirs — you name it, they’ve got it.
But food books — like food — are meant to be shared.
This Thursday (March 12, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Gilbertie’s Herbs & Garden Center), the winter Westport Farmers’ Market hosts a “foodie book swap.”
Bring your favorites. Trade them for something new.
The WFM puts it best: “Come hungry for stories, and leave inspired in the kitchen.”
A celebration of the life of Richard “Deej” Webb – the Westport native, teacher and historian who turned his lifelong fascination with F. Scott Fitzgerald’s summer here into a book and documentary — is set for March 20 (1:30 p.m., Trinity Episcopal Church, Southport).
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Compo Beach Improvement Association. Funds will help beautify Deej’s adult and childhood playground. Venmo: @CBIA-KristinPurcell-Tsr.
Deej Webb
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Bedford Middle School is taking “The Little Mermaid” to new heights.
Literally.
On March 19-22, the musical production will include — with help from ZFX Flying Effects — young actors soaring across the sage.
That’s in addition to the immersive underwater world, with dynamic lighting, projections, bubbles and theatrical effects.
Americans know Alisyn Camerota as an award-winning broadcast journalist and author.
Westporters know her as our neighbor.
On the weekend of April 10-12, a small group of women will know her as someone who helped reinvent their lives.
On a weekend retreat in the Catskills, Alisyn and Michelle Blieberg — a global talent manager and artist — will guide a fun, exciting experience to “design your future with purpose and confidence.”
Creative exercise and activities will help attendees map their next act.
The setting — the Menla Retreat and Spa, 330 acres — offers yoga, hiking, healing therapies, spa services and gourmet meals, along with Alisyn and Michelle’s expert guidance.
For more information, email info@reinventyourlife.biz. To register, click here.
Alisyn Camerota
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Sure, “06880” is “where Westport meets the world.”
But Wikipedia has a much wider reach.
And of those 100 million or so who use it daily, any who click on the “Secondary Schools” page will learn everything they need to know about high schools — or senior schools, or whatever else they’re called around the globe.
There’s plenty of text, all with the necessary Wikipedia citations.
There’s only one photo, though.
And of all the images that could have been used to illustrate high schools on the planet, the one that’s used is … Staples High School.
Staples High School, on Wikipedia’s “Secondary school” page.
The reader who alerted us to this remarkable/impressive/crazy fact writes: “At first I thought it was some kind of location-based gimmick, where the website would just display whatever school was closest to your location.
“But having looked at the editing history of the page, it actually is just the picture that they chose!”
Whether blowing bebop with the Charles Mingus Band or improvising with Anthony Braxton, Michael Rabinowitz has changed the conception of what a bassoon can do.
This Thursday (March 12, VFW Post 399; shows at 7:30 and 8:45 p.m., dinner from 7), he’ll bring his talents ot “Jazz at the Post.”
Rabinowitz will be joined by pianist Stebe Sandberg, bassist Michael O’Brien, drummer David Alvarez and saxophonist Greg “The Jazz Rabbi” Wall. Click here for tickets, and more information.
Today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo comes from Earthplace. Luisa Francoeur was at the bridge by Frog Pond. “It was interesting to see the reflections, and how they made the image difficult to decipher,” she says.
And finally … Country Joe McDonald — the Navy veteran whose rousing “I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin-‘t0-Die Rag” served as both a symbol of Woodstock and an anti-Vietnam War anthem for a generation — died Saturday in Berkeley, California.
He was 84, and suffered from Parkinson’s disease.
After his band — Country Joe & the Fish — broke up in 1970, he had a long solo career, in a variety of styles.
Click here for a full obituary. It includes the fascinating nugget that his parents — who were communists — named him after Joseph Stalin.
Weston First Selectwoman Sam Nestor has her eye on a new prize: the State Senate.
Yesterday, she filed paperwork for the 26th District seat currently held by Ceci Maher. The 2-term senator is not seeking re-election. Both Nestor and Maher are Democrats.
The district includes Westport, Weston and 6 other towns. State Representative Lucy Dathan of New Canaan also announced yesterday.
“After Senator Maher shared her plans, my family and I took time to thoughtfully consider what the future may hold,” Nestor says.
“I’ve had the opportunity to work closely with Senator Maher and deeply appreciate her thoughtfulness, hard work, and graciousness in public service. While serving as First Selecwoman of Weston has been an honor, I believe I have so much more to offer our communities.”
Weston 1st Selectwoman Sam Nestor
As her town’s chief executive, Nestor has secured and overseen more than $30 million in grants and funding.
“These experiences have given me a clear understanding of both the opportunities and the challenges towns face in working with the state,” Nestor notes.
“I know how state policies can help communities thrive — and I’ve also seen where unnecessary obstacles can actually make it harder for towns to meet the needs of their residents.”
Pressures on local communities include rising healthcare costs for municipal and school employees, plus infrastructure, energy and maintenance expenses.
“Every town is working hard to keep communities affordable, maintain strong schools, and manage rising costs responsibly,” she said. “I will bring a town leader’s perspective to the legislature and focus on policies that support municipalities rather than burden them.”
Before becoming first selectwoman, Nestor served on Weston’s Board of Selectmen and Board of Education.
“Those of us who live in Weston know that our lives and communities extend well beyond town lines,” Nestor says. “I know and care deeply about the towns of this district, and I look forward to listening carefully to residents in every community as we work together towards solutions that benefit all of us.”
It was the most iconic anti-war image of the Vietnam era: A flower, set against a yellow background, with the words — suggesting a child’s handwriting — “War is not healthy for children and other living things.”
Designed in 1965 by activist/artist/mother Lorraine Schneider, it became the logo for an organization called Another Mother for Peace.
It was incorporated into posters, flyers, newsletters, datebooks, buttons, cards and jewelry, and became an internationally recognized plea for peace.
More than half a century later, it’s back.
Westporter Cathy Utz and Fairfield resident Grayson Craddock have resurrected, redesigned and redeployed it, to fight another war: the one against social media.
Cathy Utz
A 1979 graduate of Staples High School, Utz was too young to participate in anti-Vietnam marches or rallies.
But she knew the poster well. It hung for years in the home of Estelle Margolis, the mother of a family friend and a longtime Westport peace advocate.
Today, Utz is a therapist. Her 3 sons are adults. But in her work she sees the negative impacts of social media on young people, and their families.
Craddock’s children are 15, 13 and 7. He too knows the pressures and problems caused by social media.
Craddock — a graphic designer — works with Utz’s husband, Tom Greenwald, in Broadway advertising.
Grayson Craddock
He was unfamiliar with the “War is not healthy …” design. But when Utz came to him with the idea of recreating it for the modern era, he understood the need.
And what was needed.
He had to transfer the feel of the poster, without infringing on creative rights. And it had to feel as if a young person made it.
Craddock worked with paper. He spent a day cutting out pieces, and arranging them with a glue stick. Then he took photos.
When Craddock showed his work to friends, they understood immediately. Even more tellingly, they noticed it evoked child’s play, like crafts, which have fallen out of favor lately.
Because of the pull of social media.
In the 1960s, Schneider’s art raised money for Another Mother for Peace.
Utz and Craddock — who donated all his time and talent — searched for a modern-day non-profit that could benefit from this one.
They found the Organization for Social Media Safety. Called “the first consumer protection organization exclusively focused on social media, they help protect against social media dangers like cyberbullying, sextortion, sexual harassment, anxiety, depression, suicide, self-harm, eating disorders, substance abuse and trafficking.
They work with schools, youth groups and corporations, and have developed both a K-12 curriculum and free program for parents.
Craddock also designed a website: SocialMediaIsNotHealthy.com. Through it, he and Utz offer merchandise with the updated design, including posters, mugs, t-shirts, hoodies, tote bags, bumper stickers, decals — and smartphone cases.
“We are well aware of the irony that our message has to go out via social media,” Utz says.
“Social media by itself is not bad. But we have to be aware of its bad effects.”
The website, she and Craddock hope, will “remind us to be more mindful, and dial our use back.”
(“06880” encourages limited social media use. But before you shut off your device today, please click here to contribute to “06880.” Our blog IS healthy, for children and other living things. Thanks!)
The first candidate has declared an intention to succeed Jonathan Steinberg as Westport’s state representative.
Matthew Mandell — a 20-year member of the Representative Town Meeting (RTM), and the longtime executive director of the Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce — today announced his candidacy for in the 136th District.
Calling himself an advocate for open space preservation and historic protection, Mandell released a video outlining his priorities and reasons for seeking the seat.
In the video he emphasizes the importance of maintaining local control over town planning decisions, while also addressing the need for additional affordable and workforce housing in Westport.
He points to his decades of civic involvement and grassroots leadership as preparation for representing the community in Hartford.
Matthew Mandell
“I have always had Westport’s best interests in mind,” Mandell says. “From preserving the Partrick Wetlands and saving the Kemper Gunn House to creating unique town festivals and most recently spearheading the establishment of an Affordable Housing Fund, I have worked to strengthen this community. I believe I can do even more for Westport by serving at the state level.”
Mandell says his campaign will focus on listening closely to residents and community stakeholders, gathering their concerns and ideas, and working collaboratively to move thoughtful solutions forward.
Additional priorities include strengthening consumer advocacy for residents, and advancing environmental initiatives such as expanded alternative energy and improved recycling and sustainability programs.
Infinity Care is a new personalized medicine/concierge practice, coming soon to town.
Dr. Lyuba Kofler — a family medicine physician –is a Westport mom who understands the realities of packed schedules. She designed her practice to offer “the kind of thoughtful, responsive care families often wish medicine still had.”
A core focus is what she calls “generational health.” Through “proactive prevention, lifestyle guidance, and personalized medical planning, she helps patients build habits and strategies that support not only their own health, but the well-being of their children, grandchildren, and future generations.”
Our first Easter-related item of 2026 is from Wakeman Town Farm. Their family fun “EGGstravaganza” is Saturday, April 4 (10 a.m.).
The 10:30 hunt is followed by egg-themed games, story readings with the Westport Book Shop, and photo opps with Big Bunny. Guests can isit the farm animals too.
There are treats for the kids, and coffee for adults, from The Granola Bar, Sweet P Bakery, and Danna Rogers and Jen Kass Team at the Higgins Group.
Speaking of spring: Temperatures are inching up. There’s a whiff of the new season in the air.
But all around town, snow piles remain.
And because they were dumped or pushed there after the first big snowstorm of the year, after which temperatures remained far below freezing for a week — and because tons of sand was used in the process — these big boys are not going anywhere soon.
Scott Smith spotted this one at the Imperial Avenue commuter parking lot. He writes: “Photos can’t convey just how big this snow field is. It’s gargantuan!”
Snow pile. Imperial Avenue is in the distance. (Photo/Scott Smith)
The question is: Will it still be there when the Farmers’ Market opens, in mid-May?
I bet it won’t all be gone even then.
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The national dish of Scotland is haggis.
If you’ve never enjoyed it, it’s a pudding made from sheep’s pluck (heart, liver, lungs), minced with onion, oatmeal, suet and spices. It’s encased in a sheep’s stomach and boiled.
However, 12 Westport Scouts headed to a jamboree there in July have decided to not serve haggis at their fundraiser.
Instead, Troops 39 and 139 offer a pancake breakfast. It’s this Sunday (9 a.m. to 1 p.m., VFW post 399). The full pancake bar includes plenty of toppings, sausage, juice, coffee and tea.
There’s a free will donation; $10-15 per person, $35 per family is suggested.
Players from Jeff Lea’s first state championship team — and 3 others — were on hand Saturday night, as the winningest coach in Staples boys soccer history was inducted into the Connecticut Soccer Coaches Hall of Fame.
Lea co-coached with Albie Loeffler in 1970, then served as head coach from 1978 to 2002. He earned 5 state crowns and 12 FCIAC titles. He retired in 2002, compiling a 357-77-42 record.
Congratulations, Coach Lea!
Jeff Lea (red tie) with former players (from left) Dan Woog, Jem Sollinger, Dan Donovan, Jono Sollinger, Neil Brickley, Steve Lichtman and Mike Brown.
I hate to ask for funds. But the NPR/PBS model is the only way to continue to tell stories about the people, places and past of this town; to bring you news and photos, and to do all the back-end stuff no one ever sees but that takes all of my time, 24/7/365.
Someone congratulated me on 17 years of “06880” — then said, “Sorry I missed your contribution day. I’ll send a check next year.”
Great news! Your money is good any time!
You can donate by PayPal or credit card: click here. It’s easy, safe — and you don’t even need a PayPal account.
Checks can be mailed to “06880”: PO Box 744, Westport, CT 06881.
“Adaptive rehabilitation”? A complete replacement?
Those are the most talked-about options, for the 143-year-old span.
But one “06880” readers is thinking outside the bridge — er, box.
He offers an idea that may seem improbable, perhaps impossible.
But back when Grover Cleveland was president, the idea of a bridge that opened laterally to let Saugatuck River traffic through may also have been considered way out there.
A detail of the Bridge Street Bridge, from Robert Lambdin’s Saugatuck mural.
At this point, nothing should be off the table. So “06680” presents it, for discussion. The reader writes:
What about an entirely new bridge and road next to the I-95 bridge, on one side of it or the other?
It would go from the Saugatuck Avenue parking lot underneath the I-95 bridge (next to Black Duck) to Compo Road South, using Elaine Road.
(Elaine Road leads into Westport Animal Control and the public boat launch under I-95. It is currently one-way; it would have to become two-way to bring traffic onto Compo Road South. The current exit road from the boat launch area loops just north of Elaine Drive; it takes traffic via Underhill Parkway onto Bridge Street, opposite The Saugatuck co-op residences.)
Elaine Road (red balloon), the I-95 bridge, and environs. Click on or hover over to enlarge.
This would alleviate traffic in the Saugatuck bottleneck area on Riverside Drive.
The Cribari Bridge could receive basic rebuilding, as a passenger car or possibly pedestrian-only bridge.
It seems that a temporary bridge will be necessary during the project. Why not make a better positioned permanent bridge?
Aerial view.
Meanwhile, another reader offers a suggestion for construction.
Ray Broady moved to Westport in 2014 from Southern California, with his wife of 55 years, to be closer to their daughter and granddaughter. Ray spent his career in contracting. He writes:
I realize the state Department of Transportation is trying to meet state and federal mandates, with regard to traffic.
DOT is going override the town’s wants and wishes, and move ahead with a big concrete bridge that bypasses historic preservation and careful outcome needs of our community.
We can slow and stop this outcome if we bring to DOT at the March 19 meeting (6 p.m., Town Hall) a viable consensus plan of how the Cribari Bridge can be replaced with a wonderful matching historic-looking truss bridge that is a little wider (not a lot), has better approaches, still provides the opening swing span, will have a slightly taller clearance for small boats when closed, can be built in shorter time versus standard build for a new temporary bridge, and does not disrupt traffic badly during the new bridge final in place finish.
I have come up with a plan of how this can be easily accomplished. The concept is a new historic truss Cribari Bridge replacement.
Several fabricators and builders in the country can build a new historic truss-look bridge structure in 3 separate sections. There are 2 ways to accomplish this.
The East Main Street Bridge in Newark, Licking County, Ohio is 35 feet wide. Two lanes, with bicycle and pedestrian ways, it was fabricated by US Bridge in Cambridge, Ohio.
One is to float construction barges in the river sides near the launch ramp area and under a portion of I-95 overhead, where floating cranes can assemble partially finished structures to assemble the 3 main sections for the bridge.
The other is to construct the 3 new bridge sections on barges at another site, and float them up the Saugatuck River mouth and into position when ready to set them.
These new bridge sections would have top truss sections 13′ 6″ inches above the finished bridge roadway. This would preclude large semi-truck trailers crossing the new bridge.
The new bridge should be reset in a straighter line with the Bridge Street end. This will allow new concrete footings and end approaches to be constructed without demolition of the old Cribari Bridge sections
This will mean little to no lengthy closure of the bridge traffic, and produce a complete new historic-look bridge in a greatly reduced time frame.
The river is scheduled for dredging, including the area under the bridge at both new and existing locations, to create better river depths at low tides.
The new bridge pieces can be floated on the barges, and set on the new footings and approaches. DOT might be excited about this form of construction, as they just finished an “out of the box” bridge replacement using the build and move bridge for exit 17.
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