Well, the weather forecasters nailed this one.
They said “severe thunderstorms” at 7 p.m.
Right on the dot, that is what we got.
Here are 3 apocalyptic-like scenes from Compo Beach:
(Photos/Dan Woog)
And then it got even more ominous, a few minutes later.
But I was already racing to my car.
It’s the dog days of August.
With many Westporters out of town in the final days before school resumes, most boards have canceled meetings.
Not the Planning & Zoning Commission.
And their August 17 meeting (6 p.m., Zoom) is nothing to sniff at.
They’ll consider a text amendment submitted by Representative Town Meeting member Andrew Colabella. He explains, “The text amendment would allow a form of recreation to be conducted on designated open space where active leisurely use already occurs, providing the option for a fenced dog area to be located within a park.
“It is important to understand that this is not an approval of a specific dog park or a final site plan. Rather, it is a change to the zoning regulations that would permit the use to be considered. Any specific proposal would still be subject to additional public review and approvals.
“The P&Z is not being asked to decide whether Winslow Park should have a dog run. It is being asked whether the zoning regulations should allow a fenced dog area as a permitted recreational use on designated open space where active recreational uses are already appropriate. The merits and details of any specific location remain separate questions.”
Colabella and student Emme Dorfman have designed a concept, and been given an OK for their pre-app.
“The concept will either be supported or rejected by the Parks & Recreation Commission, and is within respect to outside expert analysis by the Parks Master Plan to be located at Winslow, after carefully reviewing all viable parks and town properties throughout Westport,” Colabella adds.
Click here for background information. Click here (and then scroll down to Text Amendment #874) for additional materials.
Westport resident Mark Mathias says that, according to Planning & Zoning director Michelle Perillie, the P&Z can either keep the matter open or close it.
If they vote to approve — either that night or at a later meeting — the petitioners must submit an 8-24 Municipal Improvement Request, and Special Permit Site Plan, to the P&Z. The Parks & Recreation Department would also be involved.
Details including exact location, funding, design, and management of the space would still need to be proposed and approved.
Rendering of a possible “Dogport” at Winslow Park.
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The 64th annual Westport PAL Chief Samuel Luciano Golf Tournament tees off August 31, at Longshore.
A major fundraiser, proceeds fund the organization’s scholarship program. To register, or join as a sponsor, click here.
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Speaking of the police and scholarships: Classic cars, custom vehicles, local vendors and community members come together this Sunday (August 9, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) — all in support of a great cause.
The 8th annual Charity Car show (148 East Avenue, Norwalk) benefits the Vincent Penna Scholarship Program for high school students. It honors the memory of the late deputy chief of the Westport Police Department.
Sunday’s event — hosted by the Italian American Police Society — includes a raffle with over $35,000 in prizes, donated by more than 100 sponsors. They include automotive parts and accessories, tools, gift certificates and specialty items.
Vincent Penna Jr.
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Speaking (still) of sports: TOPSoccer — the program for youngsters with physical or learning differences — returns for another season.
Blake Serotta — a rising sophomore player at Staples — leads the program, in conjunction with the Weston Soccer Club and Westport Soccer Association.
TOPSoccer is open to boys and girls in grades K-8. It runs Saturdays, 11;30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., from September 12 through November 7 at Morehouse Farm Park in Weston.
The program includes fun games, drills, and small-sided games. Each child is paired with a buddy, who stays with them on the field. High schoolers are welcome as volunteers and buddies.
To learn more, and sign up as a player or buddy, click here. Questions? Email blake.serotta@gmail.com
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Speaking yet again of sports: Congratulations to Northeast Elite Water Polo Club.
The Westport-based youth program won the 14U Boys Gold Division championship at the USA Water Polo Junior Olympics, the nation’s largest youth water polo tournament, in Dallas.
It was not easy. The team lost their first 3 tourney games, before rallying to win 5 straight. They finished with 74 goals in 8 matches, over 5 days.
Northeast Elite was founded in 2024 by Staples High School coach Danilo Sierra-Giraldo, and Kade Ramirez-Zimmerman. Winning players include Julian Urist, Alexander Vandenberg, Sagan Feder, Sascha Bowtell, Oliver Melnichok, Yash Mani Lorenzato, Calvin Jahansouz, Santos Infantino, Ben Scanlon, Cullen Shope, Aaron Bhuyan and Joshua Smith.
Northeast Elite water polo champs.
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The Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport is hosting another humongous tag sale.
And everyone is invited.
The event is Saturday, August 15 (8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; early birds 8 a.m., $20).
They missed last year, due to building renovations. So now there are 2 years’ worth of all kinds of stuff to check out.
And buy.
A small part of the big crowd at the Unitarian Universalist tag sale.
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The curtain has fallen on the last show of the Westport Country Playhouse’s 2025-26 season.
But the stage is set for more entertainment.
“Cruel Summer” — a live band playing the music of Ariana Grande, Olivia Dean, Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter and more — rocks the theater on Friday, August 28 (7 p.m.).
Click here for tickets, and more information.
Taylor Swift will not be at the Westport Country Playhouse this month. But her music will be.
Westporter Peter Van Heerden took the helm of Pequot Library a little over 4 months ago.
But he’s already infused new energy into the 132-year-old institution, and forged community partnerships and collaborations.
One example: On September 10 (7 p.m.), Broadway legend and area resident James Naughton joins Mia Dillon, Jill Eikenberry and Michael Tucker for a reading of historic documents tied to the Declaration of Independence. A Q-and-A follows. Click here for details. and to register.
The program is part of the Pequot’s summer Special Collections exhibition, Unfinished Revolution: 250 Years of Marking American Independence.
On September 25 (7 p.m.), Naughton and friends return for a Closing Exhibition Celebration featuring another reading, Q-and-A, and a live band performance. Tickets ($50 per person) support exhibition programming. Click here for details.
And on September 19, the Pequot’s benefit features the famed Paul Taylor Dance Company. Limited to 300 attendees, the event launches the library’s new Summer Stage plan to bring top-tier talent to the region. Tickets start at $100, and sponsorships are available. Click here for details.
James Naughton
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Of all the plants we’ve plastered in this “Westport … Naturally” series, none may be better named than “elephant ears.”
Richard Fogel spotted these guys near Webb Road:
(Photo/Richard Fogel)
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And finally … in honor of Taylor Swift’s (non)-appearance at the Westport Country Playhouse (item above):
(Okay, so Taylor Swift won’t be on the Playhouse stage. But Westport still has “06880.” Please help keep us here, by making a tax-deductible contribution here. Thank you!)
Move over, William Hill Chardonnay.
Step aside, Marques De Riscal Rioja.
Make way for Westport White. And Westport Red.
The 2 wines are prominently displayed at the front of Greens Farms Spirit Shop. With labels showing the Minute Man and Cribari Bridge — 2 of our town’s most recognizable landmarks — they could not be more local.
The grapes don’t come from a Westport vineyard. It’s not bottled here. Jim Boyrer, the store’s general manager, sources it from Italy.
But it’s Westport’s wine — and there’s a special town twist. Ten percent of the proceeds go to area non-profits, like Pink Aid and food pantries.
Boyrer calls the red and white “inexpensive, and fun.” Customers agree. He’s already reordered twice.
He’s considering a Westport Prosecco and rosé. Salute! (Hat tip: Howard Edelstein)
Jim Beyrer, with his Westport wines display. (Photo/Dan Woog)
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Part of Cross Highway has been closed to through traffic since June, for renovation of the small bridge near Wakeman Town Farm.
Work has impacted Gruel Britannia. They’ll close dinner service temporarily, and resume once again when school (and the bridge) reopen.
The exact date is Thursday, August 27, with their classic car and bike show starting at 5 p.m. Dinners will then be served Friday through Sunday.
Seating is available in the full bar, the front porch or the back patio.
Owner Karen Hubrich is also adding a “full-blown British-style Sunday carvery roast.” It’s big in the UK, with roast beef, turkey, pork and lamb.
PS: Gruel Britannia’s Fairfield location is open now for dinner, Thursday through Sunday.
Gruel Britannia, on Cross Highway.
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Speaking of construction: Work is underway on the tennis courts at Staples High School.
The $1.39 million renovation project will replace 6 cracked courts with durable post-tension concrete.
The work includes perimeter fencing, updated walkways, and ADA-compliant ramps and bleachers. The target for completion is Labor Day.
(Photo/Richard Fogel)
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One River Art + Design is highlighting the work of Michael Brennecke. His work is on exhibit through October 23.
The 1971 Staples High School graduate says: “A lifelong resident of Westport, I grew up here when you couldn’t throw a stone without hitting an artist’s studio.
“My uncle was a woodcarver and my cousin, a few years older than I, was a true prodigy and my personal hero.
“I began painting at 12, and was fascinated with seascapes. A little later I experimented with abstraction. I liked the way it was possible to elicit various and ambiguous impressions from a single composition.
“After high school I attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and received my BFA from Tufts University. My first 2 years there were strictly figurative, but I eventually returned to abstraction after being struck by a show of Antonio Tapies’ work. But It’s the work of Paul Klee and Jean Dubuffet that has most greatly influenced my ongoing exploration of color and texture.”
A reception will be held, at a date to be determined.
Michael Brennecke (upper right), and his work.
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Today’s “Westport … Naturally” feature photo is well timed. Remember: The Westport Farmers’ Market is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Imperial Avenue parking lot. See you there!
(Photo/Molly Alger)
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And finally … in honor of Greens Farms Spirit Shop’s Westport wines (story above):
(Another day, another Roundup filled with news you can use — or discard. Your call. But it’s always here for you. If you appreciate our 24/7/365 work, please click here to support “06880.” Thanks!)
From its opening notes, “Oklahoma!” draws audiences in like few shows can.
You’ll see how below, in Jim Honeycutt’s highlights from Staples Players’ fall 2012 production of the classic musical.
It’s an audience favorite — with a very cool local back story. Click here to read how “Oklahoma!” got its start right here in Westport. Then click here or below, for a fantastic look back at director David Roth and Kerry Long’s show.
Yeeow! Ayipioeeay!
And what happened to the actors after the wind came sweepin’ down the plain?
Here’s an update:
Clay Singer (Curly) has extensive theater credits, including “Masquerade” in New York, “Fiddler On the Roof.””The Band’s Visit” North American tour,
“Next to Normal,” “Man of La Mancha,” “Romeo and Juliet,” “Ragtime,” “The Full Monty — and “Into the Woods” in Pittsfield, Massachusetts.
Will Smith (Judd) studied theater and English and Muhlenberg College. He is now an editor at the Empire Design Company, creating trailers for movies and TV shows.
Michelle Pauker is a singer and actor. She has appeared in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (Idaho Shakespeare Festival), “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (Great Lakes Theatre Company), and “Into The Woods (Forestburgh Playhouse). On Sunday, her band Back to the Garden 1969 performed at the Levitt Pavilion.
Everett Sussman (Will Parker) is an applied mathematics/computer science graduate of Harvard University. He is now a digital creator. He has acted in regional theater productions, including “Sweeney Todd.”
Elle Deran (Will Parker) is a trans and non-binary actor, singer and content creator. She appeared in the film “1660 Vine,” and guest-starred as Alisha in Abbott Elementary. Elle creates queer-affirming, educational social media videos to support the trans community, and co-hosts the “Trans In Love” podcast discussing relationships and trans family dynamics.
Nicholas Massoud (Ali Hakim) attended Yale, and performed all over the world with the a cappella groups the Wiffenpoofs and Sprizzwinks.
Bryan Gannon (Andrew Carnes) is an actor and producer best known for his roles as Inspector Lestrade in the film “Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Furtive Festivity,” and on “The Deuce” and “Paramount’s Fences.”
Ryder Chasin (Ike Skidmore) is a television writer, creative and comedian in Brooklyn.
Will Haskell (Cord Elam, Federal Marshall) went on to serve 2 terms as Connecticut state senator — one of the youngest state legislators in the country.
Joe Badion (Slim, A Farmer) is a graduate of Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music. He teaches upper school music at the Town School in New York.
Jack Baylis (Fred) graduated from Point Park University’s musical theater program. He has performed in “Legally Blonde,” “Jersey Boys,” “Children of Eden,” “Peter and the Starca
Sam Adelmann (Joe) earned a BFA in musical theatre and a BS in economics at Tulane University. He then participated in the Musical Theatre Intensive at the Stella Adler School of Acting in New York, and has performed in regional and theme park productions across the country. Highlights include playing “Fiddler on the Roof” in Los Angeles, and the regional debut of Disney’s “Newsies” in New Orleans.
Madeline Seidman (Ellen) is a Brooklyn-based actor, with an MFA from Yalel School of Drama. She can be seen on screen in the TV shows “Elsbeth” and “A League of Their Own.”
Emma Rufchefsky (Emma) performs professionally under the stage name Emma Charles (and occasionally EMMMA).She has toured nationally and released acclaimed singles and EPs. Billboard recognized her as a Best Emerging Artist. She continues to write, record and tour.
Cara McNiff (Vivian) graduated from Elon University with a BFA in Musical Theater. After performing for a few years, she is currently working as a regional booking manager in the music industry.
(If you like these nutshells — or any other “06880” feature — please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Posted in Arts, Entertainment, Looking back, Staples HS
Tagged "Oklahoma!", David Roth, Jim Honeycutt, Kerry Long, Staples Players
Four years separate the Staples experiences of Alex Freedman, Alisan Porter and Drew McKeon.
But the 4 graduates — from 1996, 1999 and 2000, respectively — share similar joyful memories of their high school years. Particularly important are the many hours spent in the arts wing, supported by beloved mentors like Alice Lipson, Al Pia and Joe Ziegahn.
Porter and McKeon pursued careers in music. Porter — who played Curly Sue in the movie of the same name while in high school, then performed on Broadway in “Footloose,” “A Chorus Line” and “Hair,” and won NBC’s “The Voice” competition — is a singer/songwriter.
McKeon — the longtime drummer in Michael Bolton’s band, along with Hall & Oates and Jimmy Buffett — now tours with Seal.
Alisan Porter and Drew McKeon
Freedman is a classical and jazz pianist. He worked with Stephen Sondheim, Kander and Ebb, and Phil Ramone, then became both a start-up entrepreneur, one of the tri-state area’s most sought-after tutors, and a marathon runner.
Now — in a happy culmination of coincidences and hard work-to-make-it-happen — the 3 friends got together in California to write and record. The album is called “Porter.”
Their new music is getting plenty of attention. And why not? Besides the immense talents of the trio, the Los Angeles studio has quite a history. Owned 100 years ago by Charlie Chaplin, and later by A&M Records, it was where “We Are the World” was recorded.
Along with 13 albums by Joni Mitchell, and others by the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and the Carpenters.
Alex Freedman
Porter — who recorded all her previous albums in the studio — hired some of her favorite musicians for this project. Leland Sklar is a legendary bassist with over 2,000 album credits, including James Taylor, Phil Collins, Toto, Jackson Browne and Linda Ronstadt. Shoshana Bean just won a Tony Award for “The Lost Boys.” Guitarist David Levita worked with Tim McGraw, Alanis Morissette, Faith Hill and Sara Bareilles.
Grammy-nominated Sam Barsh shares producing credits with Porter and McKeon. Freedman is the executive producer.
“It was like Tom Hanks in ‘Big,'” McKeon recalls. “We made a fantasy draft list of musicians we wanted, and called them in.”
The Staples grads’ long friendship spurred creativity. “We’re all each other’s biggest fans,” Porter says.
From left: Shelley Scarr, Michael Sanchez, Keri Larson, Alex Freedman, Alisan Porter, Drew McKeon, Stephan Hovsepian, David Levita, Leland Sklar.
A mix of Americana, roots, rock and alt-pop, Porter prefers to summarize the genre this way: “super-fun.” Key themes include grief, womanhood, letting go and reinvention.
Freedman’s business background was important too. “I’d been out of music for years,” he says. “I didn’t feel like I belonged. But it brought back a lot of emotions.” He plays piano, organ and synthesizer on many of the tracks.
For the first time, Porter says, she felt she was in charge of a musical product. “We made all the decisions, not someone else. We had the freedom to be the label.”
Alisan Porter
Each musician brought “different creative forces and strengths,” McKeon notes.
They’re dropping singles regularly. The full album is out September 18.
“Man Out of You” — released this past Friday — “is the story of one of your best girlfriends telling you, once again, how a man let her down. This time, I realized I needed to write about it,” Porter says. She collaborated closely with Bean on this song. Click here for the Spotify link.
Click here or below to listen to and watch “Race To Nowhere.”
Click here and below to listen to and watch “Space.”
They’re marketing themselves on social media, through videos, and on platforms like Walrus.fm.
The 3 musicians hope they’ll inspire young artists moving forward.
The same way, they say, that their Staples mentors inspired them, all those (very short) years ago.
(Click here for Alisan Porter’s Spotify link. Click here for her Apple Music link.)
(“06880” reports often on the varied and very cool accomplishments of Staples graduates. If you like stories like this, please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Posted in Arts, Entertainment, Staples HS
Tagged Alex Freedman, Alisan Porter, Drew McKeon
New York magazine’s “Curbed” real estate section has turned its spotlight on Westport.
On the market for the first time, Berthold Nebel’s studio on Roseville Road “looks less like a house than a tiny English church with thick stone walls and a vaulted ceiling.”
Berthold Nebel’s studio. (Photo/Realty Plans)
It includes a great room at the center the sculptor worked; wings with a study, a small kitchen and basement.
“With one bedroom and one bathroom across 1,500 square feet, it may be an oddity in today’s Westport,” the piece says. It’s listed for $1.495 million.
When Nebel arrived in 1928, and won a major commission in 1928 to build a set of bronze doors for a building in Manhattan, he bought an 1883 farmhouse with 9 acres of land (including an apple orchard), and built the studio.
“The floors are reinforced. The ceilings are 17 feet high. A pulley system allowed him to wheel a heavy piece out from the main room to a terrace, through high double doors, where he could look at his work in daylight.”
The main space has a platform loft (left) and plaster casts Nebel made for architectural commissions. (Photo/Realty Plans)
Nebel — who came to the US from Switzerland with his parents when he was 1 — “left his mark across Manhattan, from the sea nymphs in the ceilings of the old Cunard Building at the foot of Broadway to the limestone reliefs at the Hispanic Society up on 155th Street.”
He was hired as James Earle Fraser’s studio assistant in Gramercy Park, New York City. Fraser designed the buffalo nickel, the “End of the Trail” sculpture of a Native American slumped over a tired horse, and the Theodore Roosevelt statue at the Museum of Natural History.
Nebel moved to Westport on the advice of Fraser, who already lived here. He soon built a studio much like Fraser’s. Nebel lived and worked there with his family, until his death in 1964.
The back of the house today. The central door leads to the basement level. (Photo/Realty Plans)
Here he worked on commissions that included 2 sets of bronze doors for the Museum of the Americna Indian, and the Museum of the National Geographic Society.
Among Nebel’s other works: a statue of Confederate General Joseph Wheeler for the rotunda of the US Captiol, and another of General John Sedgwick for the front of the Connecticut Capitol in Hartford.
Berthold Nebel, with his sculptures in his studio.
Six months before atomic bombs were dropped on Japan, Nebel designed a metal called “World Unity or Oblivion.” It shows a US soldier aiding a wounded companion. The reverse side says:
One of Nebel’s last works was called “Adventure.” It showed a man and woman on a farm horse, riding toward a new life. The renewal of the human spirit was one of his favorite themes.
“The Adventure” (Berthold Nebel)
Curbed says his wife Marietta “entertained the local art crowd with big Italian meals and fresh-baked bread. They had two children, and after Berthold’s death in 1964, their son took over the main farmhouse and cared for his mother.”
Their daughter — photographer Lucia Nebel White — was “a bit more bohemian.” She married an architect who subdivided the orchard and built 6 homes.
In the 1970s, the family moved into the studio. White lived there until her death in 2017, age 93.
“Her eldest son moved in during the pandemic and nursed the orchard’s last remaining tree back to health,” the “Curbed” piece continues.
“Selling the place was impossible until the siblings could figure out what to do with their grandfather’s stuff, which wasn’t the usual matter of donating a few boxes and holding an estate sale. One of Nebel’s major works was still there —
“The Wrestlers,” a huge plaster work of two sinewy men locked in combat, which had been his thesis as a student. Moving it out would cost thousands.”
It’s now been donated to the Lyme Academy of Fine Arts. The few remaining pieces of art are also being removed.
“The Wrestlers,” being moved to Lyme. (Photo/Maria White Keogh)
“As for the house itself, ‘The interest is keen,’ said broker Kelley Long Thrush. ‘Buyers know you’ll never find this architecture here again.'”
(To read the full New York magazine “Curbed” story, click here. Hat tip Jeff Mitchell)
(“06880” regularly covers Westport’s real estate and arts scenes — and occasionally, their intersection. If you like stories like this, please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Serene summer scenes highlight this week’s art gallery.
It’s the perfect way to welcome August, for our many visitors.
As for our artists: No matter your age; the style or subject you choose — and whether you’re a first-timer or old-timer — we want your submissions. Watercolors, oils, charcoal, pen-and-ink, acrylics, mixed media, digital, lithographs, collages, macramé, jewelry, sculpture, decoupage, needlepoint — we want whatever you’ve got.
Just email a JPG to 06880blog@gmail.com. And please include the medium you’re working in.
“Atlantics 16 & 127 Off South Beach” (Eric Bosch)
“Westporthenge — August 2022” (Michael Tomashefsky– Available for purchase; click here)
“In the Nantucket Serengeti — Fall” (Nancy Breakstone — Available for purchase; click here)
“I Come Bearing Gifts” — found trunk and rocks, Monhegan Island, Maine (Jerry Kuyper)
“The Koi Pond” — encaustic wax, 13 x 25 (Dorothy Robertshaw — Available for purchase; click here)
“Watercolor Fusion” (June Rose Whittaker — Available for purchase; click here)
“This is Not a Blue Pizza” — acrylic paint (Joanne Leaman — Available for purchase; click here)
Untitled (Tom Doran — Available for purchase; click here)
Untitled (Zoe Abrams, 15-year-old One River Art student)
“Dare You to Tickle Her Paw!” (Mike Hibbard)
“A Forever in Bloom Rose Bouquet” — crochet (Rebecca Stein Richards)
“Summer Pause” (Patricia McMahon)
“Please Buy My Pretty Flowers!” (Steve Stein)
“Lacing Up” (Lawrence Weisman)
(Entrance is free to our online art gallery –as it has been for 6 years. But please consider an anniversary donation! Just click here — and thank you!)
Does Lee Goldstein have an opponent in the 136th District State Representative race?
The Bord of Education chair is the Democratic candidate to replace retiring Representative Jonathan Steinberg.
This week, Douglas Ouellette’s name appeared as the Republican candidate, on the Ballotpedia site. Papers were filed with the Secretary of the State on May 28. However, rumors have circulated in town that Ouellette is a placeholder, until another candidate can be found.
That’s bolstered by his invisibility on the campaign trail. There’s been no sign of activity, online or in real life.
Ouellette has not run for office before. His LinkedIn profile identifies him as CEO of Westport-based Home Choice Senior Care.
No official announcement has been made. Westport Republican Town Committee chair Patrizia Zucaro did not respond to an email request for comment.
Ballotpedia screenshot.
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A reminder: National Night Out is coming to Westport.
The event — part of a campaign to promote police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie, in all 50 states — is next Tuesday, August 4. It’s sponsored by the Westport Police Department, from 5 to 8 p.m. on Jesup Green.
There’s plenty of action, including:
Food is available too, from a pizza truck and ice cream vendors.
Local businesses and organizations are invited to participate. Contact Lt. Sereniti Dobson for more information: sdobson@westportct.gov.
If you haven’t yet seen the MoCA\CT show, “The Disappointed Tourist” — and why haven’t you? — you’ve got 3 more days.
The exhibit ends Sunday (August 2).
Featuring over 230 painted homages to places past, artist Ellen Harvey’s show transforms shared recollections into paintings that commemorate places no longer standing, but still vivid in collective memory. Among them: Allen’s Clam House, Bloodroot, Cedar Brook Café and The Remarkable Book Shop.
MoCA will be closed from August 3 through 13. They’ll be installing the next exhibit: Michael Borders’ “Connecticut Industry.”
The colossal 10-by-40-foot mural traces more than 350 years of the state’s industrial history. Built on 25 years of research, the exhibition invites reflection on the past—and on how automation and artificial intelligence will shape the future.
An opening reception is set for September 10 (6 to 8 p.m.). The show runs through November 15. Click here for more information.
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Speaking of closings: The final 3 performances of “Agatha Christie’s The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” at Westport Country Playhouse are this weekend: tonight (Friday, 8 p.m.) and tomorrow (Saturday, 3 and 8 p.m.).
But if you can’t see it here — and why not? — you can find it around the globe.
The show — adapted for stage from the classic novel, and directed by the Playhouse’s own artistic director Mark Shanahan — will be produced between now and next spring in Bristol, Indiana; Pittsburgh; Northfield, Minnesota; St. Joseph, Michigan; Phoenix; Norfolk, and York, Nebraska. Click here for details.
It’s also being staged right now in Hungary and Cape Town, South Africa.
Of course, the Playhouse is a lot closer.
Cape Town poster.
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The Historic District Commission meets August 11 (7 p.m.; Zoom).
The agenda includes discussion of demolition permits for:
Click here for links to all materials.
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The KEYS party scheduled for this Sunday has been postponed a week, to August 9 (4 to 6 p.m.).
The event at 53 Compo Beach Road is for KEYS (Kids Empowered by Your Support). The Bridgeport non-profit offers free music lessons, summer camps and instruments to 600 youngsters in 21 schools.
The party will introduce guests to the organization, including volunteer, donation and support opportunities. For more information, email KanikaTaylor@hotmail.com.
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A sign at the intersection of Compo Road South and Bridge Street touts a sidewalk improvement project.
One other thing that could be improved: the spelling of Ned Lamont’s title.
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We often think of downtown in terms of asphalt.
Today’s “Westport … Naturally” image is a reminder of how much greenery and vegetation there is, all over Westport. Including Main Street and Parker Harding Plaza.
The sunrise is an added bonus.
(Photo/Janine Scotti)
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And finally … Harry Potter turns 46 years old today.
He sure doesn’t seem it!
(Not sure how to celebrate Harry Potter’s birthday? We’re sure he’d appreciate you clicking here, to help support Westport’s favorite hyper-local blog. It’s magic!)
Posted in Arts, Categories, Police, Politics, Real estate, Westport Country Playhouse
Tagged Douglas Ouellette, KEYS music program, Lee Goldstein, MoCA\CT
The last time we mentioned Josh Suggs, the 2021 Staples High School graduate had just been featured in the Wall Street Journal.
Yesterday, the 23-year-old was seen by an even bigger audience: NBC’s “Today” show.
Brian Cheung interviewed him about Street Talk. That’s the company he formed, after dropping out of Syracuse University. It is “disrupting advertising,” Cheung said.
Josh’s route to social entrepreneurship started in Westport, he told “Today.” As a 14-year-old, he got free haircuts for social media posts.
When a Syracuse friend paid Josh $2,000 for 30 street interviews, a light bulb went off. Today, Street Talk earns 8 figures in revenue by conducting authentic, unscripted street interviews that companies large and small can use as brand ads.
“I bet on myself, and the future fo social media,” Josh said.
Click here for the full — and very engaging — interview.
RERUN: Last fall’s story was not the first to feature Josh Suggs. Click here to read this one, from 2016. It features Josh and his great Bedford Middle School friend, Jamie Mann. A fellow SHS grad, Jamie has also made a name for himself in New York: on Broadway.
Screenshot: Josh Suggs and Brian Cheung.
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Congratulations to Russell Greenberg and Gadi Slade!
The Chabad of Westport friends recently participated in the Maccabi Games in Israel (aka “the Jewish Olympics”). Over 5,000 athletes attended, including 900 from the US.
Greenberg swam in the Masters division, and captained his team. He captured gold in the 65-69 age group in the 100 meter freestyle, then added silver medals in the 50 free, 50 butterfly and 200 free. He was also part of 3 silver medal relays. Greenberg called the competition “the highlight of my swimming career.”
Slade’s story starts in 1932. A blonde, blue-eyed Jew from Frankfurt traveled to Tel Aviv where, by chance, the 1st Maccabi Games were being held. She met a doctor from Galilee. They exchanged phone numbers and addresses. But she returned to Germany and did not think about him.
Six months later, Hitler came to power. Nine months after that, the German woman and her parents fled to Haifa, where she knew just one person: the doctor from the Maccabi Games. They got together, fell in love, and were married. Slade is their grandson.
He planned to gain citizenship in Ecuador, make the national basketball team, and play in the Atlanta Olympics — all to get into Harvard Business School.
When that failed, he tried out in 1997 (also unsuccessfully) for the inaugural Maccabi USA field hockey team. Finally, this year he make the Games for masters table tennis. He won a gold medal in the team competition.
94 years after his grandparents met, Gadi marched in the opening ceremony with his son Leo (who also participated in table tennis, for 16 and under).
“The medal was a nice surprise, but for me just being there and wearing the Team USA shirt was my definition of victory,” Slade says.
Gadi Slade (left) and Russell Greenberg, with Maccabi medals.
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Between email, texts and now AI, we’ve forgotten how to have conversations with actual human beings we don’t know.
Help is near.
Staples High School Class of 2012 graduate Tom Karrel has just published “The Lost Art of Random Conversations: How One Conversation with a Stranger Will Change the Way You Connect with Everyone.”
Drawing on over 10,000 hours of group facilitation experience across nearly 50 countries, Karrel offers practical tools and honest stories to help readers break through phone addiction, overcome social anxiety and loneliness, and create real world connections.
It’s available on Amazon, and by clicking here.
Tom Karrel
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Kawa Ni’s “Paint + Sip” events are a smash.
The next 2 are planned for August 5 and 19 (6:30 to 8 p.m.).
Artist Lauren Smith leads guests as they create, sip and enjoy lite bites, on the Bridge Square rooftop overlooking the Saugatuck River.
For $56 you get painting supplies, an 8″x10″ canvas, and Kawa Ni fare. Wine, sake and cocktails are available for purchase. Click here to register.
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Lachat Town Farm offers 3 fall children’s programs:
Click here for details. Questions? Email childrensprograms@lachattownfarm.org.
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Every Thursday for several years, VFW Post 399 has hosted 2 jazz shows. They kick off at 7:30 and 8:45.
Now, every other Thursday, the Dave Kardas Band plays original jazz, blues and rock, right before (5:30 to 7:15 p.m.). Upcoming dates are tonight (July 31), August 13 and 27, and September 10.
The music is free. There’s happy hour food and drink prices too.
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Westport Police made 2 custodial arrests between July 22 and 28.
A 50-year-old Fairfield man was charged with evading responsibility, traveling too fast for conditions, failure to drive right and reckless endangerment, following 2 notifications on Sturges Highway from iPhone crash detection. Two calls were made, and the man denied being involved in an accident. However, a witness reported a damaged and disabled Tesla unoccupied in the middle of the road, and a man walking away. An investigation determined that the vehicle left the road twice, striking several large rocks. He was released on a $5,000 bond.
A 68-year-old Westport woman was charged with driving the wrong way on a 1-way street, interfering with an officer and failure to appear, following an investigation into an April incident on Franklin Street. The woman approached an officer driving the wrong way. After being signaled to stop, she rolled up her window and attempted to change direction multiple times. When she stopped she was argumentative with officers. She refused to exit the vehicle, and engaged in a physical struggle. She was released on $3,500 bonds.
Westport Police also issued these citations:
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A crepe myrtle tree makes its first-ever “Westport … Naturally” appearance today. This beauty is on Compo Road South.
(Photo/Topsy Siderowf)
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And finally … in honor of Tom Karrel, and his book on how to have a conversation (story above):
(Speaking of conversations: Let’s talk! If you appreciate even a small part of this hyper-local blog, please consider clicking here to support our work. We rely on you — our readers — so thank you!)
Posted in Arts, Children, Entertainment, Media, Police, Restaurants, Sports
Tagged Josh Suggs, Kawa Ni, Lachat Town Farm, Maccabi Games, NBC Today Show, Tom Karrel, VFW Post 399
In the spring of 2012, Staples Players directors David Roth and Kerry Long produced “Into the Woods.” Both are longtime fans of Stephen Sondheim, and first staged the show 10 years earlier.
Click here or below for highlights. As always, they’re courtesy of former media teacher Jim Honeycutt, who videotaped all of Roth and Long’s shows.
Many Players have gone on to interesting careers, in and out the arts. Among them:
Will Haskell (Narrator) went on to serve 2 terms as Connecticut state senator — one of the youngest state legislators in the country.
Elle Deran (Rapunzel’s Prince) is a trans and non-binary actor, singer and content creator.
Sofia Ribolla (Cinderella) shifted her focus from theater to to medicine while in college, and is now an optometrist with Greenwich Ophthalmology Associates.
Clay Singer (Jack) has extensive theater credits, including “Masquerade” in New York, “Fiddler On the Roof.””The Band’s Visit” North American tour,
“Next to Normal,” “Man of La Mancha,” “Romeo and Juliet,” “Ragtime,” “The Full Monty — and “Into the Woods” in Pittsfield, Massachusetts.
Jamie Yarmoff (Cinderella’s Stepmother) is a renewable energy professional amd chapter leader for Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy. She founded the WRISE Utah chapter in Salt Lake City.
Cara McNiff (Drusilla) graduated from Elon University with a degree in musical theater. She is still involved in theater. as a regional booking manager.
Sami Schwaeber (Jack’s Mother) is a Brooklyn-based musical comedian, actor and writer recognized for her queer, Jewish and mental health-focused stand-up and sketch work.
Madeline Seidman (Jack’s Mother) is a Brooklyn-based actor, with an MFA from Yalel School of Drama. She can be seen on screen in the TV shows “Elsbeth” and “A League of Their Own.”
Michelle Pauker (The Witch) is a singer and actor. She has appeared in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (Idaho Shakespeare Festival), “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (Great Lakes Theatre Company), and “Into The Woods (Forestburgh Playhouse). On Sunday, her band Back to the Garden 1969 performed at the Levitt Pavilion.
August Laska (Wolf) transitioned from acting to behind-the-scenes work in producing and marketing, eventually serving as a marketing coordinator for Disney Theatrical Group. He co-produced “Broadway Gets GLAAD” at Joe’s Pub, and worked as a co-producer on the Off-Broadway and summer Broadway runs of “Broadway Bounty Hunter.” He currently owns The Old Yew plant shop.
Charlie Greenwald (Cinderella’s Prince) is a Connecticut local and the author of the acclaimed new Halloween children’s book “Jeff O’Lantern,” as well as the popular “The Rescues” series, which he co-wrote with his father.
Everett Sussman (Cinderella’s Father) is an applied mathematics/computer science graduate of Harvard University. He is now a digital creator. He has acted in regional theater productions, including “Sweeney Todd.”
Charlotte Weber (Repunzel) attended the International Culinary Center. She works professionally as a pastry chef).
Ryder Chasin is a television writer, creative and comedian in Brooklyn.
Nicholas Massoud (Mysterious Man) attended Yale, and performed all over the world with the a cappella groups the Wiffenpoofs and Sprizzwinks.
Joe Badion (Sprites) is a graduate of Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music. He teaches upper school music at the Town School in New York.
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Posted in Arts, Looking back, Staples HS
Tagged "Into the Woods, David Roth, Jim Honeycutt, Kerry Long, Staples Players
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