Theatre: Fosse (November 2000)

Fosse is a three-act musical revue showcasing the choreography of Bob Fosse and directed by Ann Reinking. The show opened in 1999, and closed in 2001, after 1093 performances. The musical did not recreate the musical numbers as originally presented but instead had primarily black-and-white costumes (including the all-important hats), set against a simple setting.

Theatre: Company at Civic Theater (October 2000)

Company is a 1970 musical comedy with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The original production was nominated for a record-setting fourteen Tony Awards and won six. Originally titled Threes, its plot revolves around Bobby (a single man unable to commit fully to a steady relationship, let alone marriage), the five married couples who are his best friends, and his three girlfriends. Unlike most book musicals, which follow a clearly delineated plot, Company is a concept musical composed of short vignettes, presented in no particular chronological order, linked by a celebration for Bobby's 35th birthday. Company was among the first musicals to deal with adult themes and relationships. The theme is New York marriages with a central character to examine those marriages.

Act I

Robert is a well-liked single man living in New York City, whose friends are all married or engaged couples: Joanne and Larry, Peter and Susan, Harry and Sarah, David and Jenny, and Paul and Amy. It is Robert's 35th birthday and the couples have gathered to throw him a surprise party. When Robert fails to blow out any candles on his birthday cake, the couples promise him that his birthday wish will still come true, though he has wished for nothing, since his friends are all that he needs ("Company"). What follows is a series of disconnected vignettes in no apparent chronological order, each featuring Robert during a visit with one of the couples or alone with a girlfriend. The first of these features Robert visiting Sarah, a foodie supposedly now dieting, and her husband Harry, an alcohol abuser supposedly now on the wagon. Sarah and Harry taunt each other on their vices, escalating toward karate-like fighting and thrashing that may or may not be playful. The caustic Joanne, the oldest, most cynical, and most-oft divorced of Robert's friends, comments sarcastically to the audience that it is "The Little Things You Do Together" that make a marriage work. Harry then explains, and the other married men concur, that you are always "Sorry-Grateful" about getting married, and that marriage changes both everything and nothing about the way you live.

Robert is next with Peter and Susan, on their apartment terrace. Peter is Ivy League, and Susan is a southern belle; the two seem to be a perfect couple, yet they surprise Robert with the news of their upcoming divorce. At the home of the uptight Jenny and chic David, Robert has brought along some marijuana that they share. The couple turns to grilling Robert on why he has not yet gotten married. Robert claims he is not against the notion, but three women he is currently fooling around with—Kathy, Marta, and April—appear and proceed, Andrews Sisters-style, to chastise Robert for his reluctance to being committed ("You Could Drive a Person Crazy"). David tries to tell Robert privately that Jenny didn't like the marijuana, after she asks for another joint. "I married a square," he reminds his wife, demanding she bring him food.

All of Robert's male friends are deeply envious about his commitment-free status, and each has found someone they find perfect for Robert ("Have I Got a Girl For You"), but Robert is waiting for someone who merges the best features of all his married female friends ("Someone is Waiting"). Robert meets his three girlfriends in a small park on three separate occasions as Marta sings of the city: crowded, dirty, uncaring, yet somehow wonderful ("Another Hundred People"). Robert first gets to know April, a slow-witted airline flight attendant. Robert then spends time with Kathy; they had dated previously and both admit that they had each secretly considered marrying the other. They laugh at this coincidence before Robert suddenly considers the idea seriously; however Kathy reveals that she is leaving for Cape Cod with a new fiancé. Finally, Robert meets with Marta; she loves New York, and babbles on about topics as diverse as true sophistication, the difference between uptown and downtown New York, and how you can always tell a New Yorker by his or her ass. Robert is left stunned.

The scene turns to the day of Amy and Paul's wedding; they have lived together for years, but are only now getting married. Amy is in an overwhelming state of panic and, as the upbeat Paul harmonizes rapturously, Amy patters an impressive list of reasons why she is not "Getting Married Today." Robert, the best man, and Paul watch as she complains and self-destructs over every petty thing she can possibly think of and finally just calls off the wedding explicitly. Paul dejectedly storms out into the rain and Robert tries to comfort Amy, but emotionally winds up offering an impromptu proposal to her himself. His words jolt Amy back into reality, and with the parting words "you need to marry some body, not just some body," she runs out after Paul, at last ready to marry him. The setting returns to the scene of the birthday party, where Robert is given his cake and tries to blow out the candles again. He wishes for something this time, someone to "Marry Me a Little."

Act II

The birthday party scene is reset, and Robert goes to blow out his candles. This time, he gets them about half out, and the rest have to help him. The couples share their views on Robert with each other, comments which range from complimentary to unflattering, as Robert reflects on being the third wheel ("Side By Side By Side"), soon followed by the up-tempo paean to Robert's role as the perfect friend ("What Would We Do Without You?"). In a dance break in the middle of the number (or, in the case of the 2006 Broadway revival, in a musical solo section), each man (or actually four of them, as there's not music for a fifth) in turn does a dance step (or, in the revival, plays a solo on his instrument), answered by his wife. Then Robert likewise does a step (or, in the case of the 2006 Broadway revival, plays two bad notes on a kazoo), but he has no partner to answer it.

Robert brings April to his apartment for a nightcap after a date. She marvels ad nauseam at how homey his place is, and he casually leads her to the bed, sitting next to her on it and working on getting her into it. She earnestly tells him of an experience from her past, involving the death of a butterfly; he counters with a bizarre remembrance of his own, obviously fabricated, and designed to put her in the mood to succumb to seduction. Meanwhile, the married women worry about Robert's single and lonesome status (as they see it), and particularly about the unsuitable qualities they find in the women he does date, asking, "Isn't she a little bit, well--Dumb? Tacky? Vulgar? Old? Tall? Aggressive? Where is she from?...She's tall enough to be your mother...." ("Poor Baby"). When the inevitable sex happens, we hear Robert's and April's thoughts, interspersed with music that expresses and mirrors their increasing excitement. This music often (as in the original Broadway production) accompanies a solo dance by Kathy, conveying the emotions and dynamics of making love; it has also been staged as a pas de deux, a group number, or been cut altogether in various productions ("Tick-Tock").^[4] The next morning, April rises early, to report for duty aboard a flight to "Barcelona." Robert tries to get her to stay, at first wholeheartedly, parrying her apologetic protestations that she can't, with playful begging and insistence. As April continues to reluctantly resist his entreaties, and sleepiness retakes him, Bobby seems to lose conviction, agreeing that she should go; that change apparently gets to her, and she joyfully declares that she will stay, after all. This takes Robert by surprise, and his astonished, plaintive "Oh, God!" is suffused not with triumph, nor even ambivalence, but with evident fear and regret.

In the following scene, Robert takes Marta to visit Peter and Susan, on their terrace. Apparently, Peter flew to Mexico to get the divorce, but he phoned Susan and she joined him there for a vacation. Bizarrely, they are still living together, claiming they have too many responsibilities to actually leave each other's lives, and that their relationship has actually been strengthened by the divorce. Susan takes Marta inside to make lunch, and Peter asks Robert if he has ever had a homosexual experience. They both admit they have, and Peter hints at the possibility that he and Robert could have such an encounter, but Robert uncomfortably laughs the conversation off as a joke just as the women return.

Joanne and Larry take Robert out to a nightclub, where Larry dances, and Joanne and Robert sit watching, getting thoroughly drunk. She blames Robert for always being an outsider, only watching life rather than living it, and also persists in berating Larry. She raises her glass in a mocking toast to "The Ladies Who Lunch", passing judgment on various types of rich, middle-aged women wasting their lives away with mostly meaningless activities. Her harshest criticism is reserved for those, like herself, who "just watch," and she concludes with the observation that all these ladies are bound together by a terror that comes with the knowledge that "everybody dies." Larry returns from the dance floor, taking Joanne's drunken rant without complaint and explains to Robert that he still loves her dearly. When Larry leaves to pay the check, Joanne bluntly invites Robert to begin an affair with her, assuring him that she will "take care of him." The reply this elicits from him, "But who will I take care of?" seems to surprise him, and to strike Joanne as a profound breakthrough on his part, "...a door opening that's been stuck for a long time." Robert insists it's not, that he's studied and been open to marriages and commitment, but questions "What do you get?" Upon Larry's return, Robert asks again, angrily, "What do you get?" Joanne declares, with some satisfaction, "I just did someone a big favor." She and Larry go home, leaving Robert lost in frustrated contemplation.

The couples' recurrent musical motif begins yet again, with all of them focused anew on their "Bobby Bubbi," "Robert darling," "Bobby baby," and again inviting him to "Drop by anytime...." Rather than the cheery, indulgent tone he'd responded with in earlier scenes, Robert suddenly, desperately, shouts "STOP!" In their stunned silence, he challenges them with quiet intensity: "What do you get?" The music to "Being Alive" begins, and he sings, openly enumerating the many traps and dangers he perceives in marriage; speaking their disagreements, his friends counter his ideas, one by one, encouraging him to dare to try for love and commitment. Finally, Bobby's words change, expressing a desire, increasing in urgency, for loving intimacy, even with all its problems, and the wish to meet someone with whom to face the challenge of "Being Alive." The opening party resets a final time; Robert's friends have waited two hours, with still no sign of him. At last, they all prepare to leave, expressing a new hopefulness about their absent friend's chances for loving fulfillment, and wishing him a happy birthday, wherever he may be, as they leave. Robert then appears alone, smiles, and blows out his candles.

Stone Harbor: Fish Tales (October 2000)

Fish Tales is one of the finest restaurants in Stone Harbor, serving up seafood and other entrees. Even though this is a cloth napkin restaurant, it is still down to
earth. Like many Stone Harbor restaurants, it is BYOB, so buy your own booze from Fred's Tavern three blocks away.

Stone Harbor: 9820 (October 2000)

9820 is both an address (on Third Avenue) and a restaurant name. 9820 is a hip place with a semi Dolche and Gabana decor:  lace curtains, dark corners,
candles, and raised platforms. Like many Stone Harbor restaurants, it is BYOB, so buy your own booze from Fred's Tavern three blocks away.

Gettysburg (October 2000)

Coming Soon

Hotel:
Doubleday Inn Link to my review

Restaurants:
Dobbins House Link to my review
Gettysburg Hotel Link to my review

Gettysburg: Gettysburg Hotel (October 2000)

The Gettysburg Hotel, established in 1797, is located in the heart of historic downtown Gettysburg and is within walking distance to the Gettysburg battlefield, historic area attractions, and many downtown shops and restaurants. This historic Gettysburg hotel has been recently renovated and offers superior service in a charming and ideal setting, rich in history and hospitable ambiance. Each of the 119 well-appointed guest rooms and suites at the Gettysburg Hotel are designed with today’s traveler in mind. This historic Pennsylvania hotel boasts award-winning food, beverage, and catering service beyond compare.

Gettysburg: Dobbins House (October 2000)

Four score and seven years before the Civil War Battle of Gettysburg (in 1776), Reverend Alexander Dobbin built a house to begin a new life in America for himself and his family. Today his home, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is a colonial restaurant where candlelit elegance, superior food in abundance, and gracious service bring back the sights, sounds, and tastes of two centuries ago. The friendly hospitality of the Dobbin House extends to the Springhouse Tavern, Gettystown Bed and Breakfast, Country Curiosity Store, Abigail Adams Ballroom, in-house bakery and secret "underground railroad" slave hideout.

Gettysburg: Doubleday Inn (October 2000)

My spouse and I stayed at the Doubleday Inn for one evening in mid-October 2000 to celebrate my spouse’s 40th birthday (he’s a huge Civil War buff). The B and B is located directly on the battlefield. Surrounded by history from the moment you arrive, you immediately feel the sacredness of this ground and the significance of the events that happened there. The location of the inn literally puts history right at your doorstep. Enjoy beautiful sunrises and sunsets over land that is virtually unchanged from its 1863 appearance. The Inn shares an original rock wall boundary with Gettysburg National Military Park that marks the position of the Union First Corps troops during the afternoon fighting of July 1st. The Union Line is demarcated by the stone wall in our front yard. You can imagine the waves of North Carolinians attacking across the field and towards the Inn. There are 42 monuments within 1⁄4 mile of the Inn, which commemorate the cavalry, infantry, and artillery fighting that took place on the afternoon of July 1, 1863. Doubleday Avenue is a Park road. Except for our guests and a few neighbors, traffic stops after 10:00 pm when the park closes (however, there is no curfew and you do not have to be back to the Inn by 10:00 pm). The Doubleday Inn is only 1 mile from Lincoln Square, the center of town. With almost an acre of land featuring extensive gardens, a deck, a patio, and a covered porch, there is space for everyone to relax and unwind. And since we are within the National Park, we have unobstructed views from 3 sides of the house. With 9 rooms, we provide clean and comfortable rooms that have been well-appointed with all the comforts of home: custom window treatments with hardwood blinds for total privacy, comfortable beds, soft and cozy linens, fluffy towels, premium bathroom amenities and quiet central heating and air conditioning. We try to provide convenience in every way with things like WiFi access throughout the Inn, a computer/printer for guest use, a guest refrigerator, a water cooler for filling bottles, an ice machine, garage access for bicycle storage, copies of the Audio Tour to borrow, and a library with hundreds of Civil War titles which you may borrow during your stay. We cook and bake everything in house (even the cookies!). Our breakfasts feature hearty portions of good old-fashioned country cooking. We alternate between sweet and savory dishes served with either a baked good or breakfast meat. Every plate features an ample portion of fresh fruit. We do not have televisions so that everyone can relax and enjoy the peace and quiet afforded by this beautiful National Park. The Doubleday Inn has been hosting guests on the Gettysburg Battlefield since 1987, and we are proud to carry on the fine tradition of hospitality that has been established here!

New Orleans (September 2000)

Fourth Anniversary Trip

Hotel: Omni Royal Orleans Link to my review

Restaurants: 

• Bayona Link to my review
• Commander's Palace Link to my review
• Cafe du Monde Link to my review
• Court of the Two Sisters  Link to my review
• New Orleans Cooking School Link to my review
• The Grill Room Link to my review
• Louis XVI Link to my review  
• Pat O'Brien's Link to my review

New Orleans: Omni Royal Orleans (September 2000)

My spouse and I stayed at the Omni Royal Orleans for four nights in late September 2000. We stayed in a Petite Room, which was a cozy 175 square feet and featured one queen bed. Our room was beautifully appointed with Creole and French accents and offered a view of the courtyard.

The Omni Royal Orleans is located in the French Quarter at the corner of St. Louis and Royal. The hotel has received the Four Diamond luxury award for the past 31 years. The hotel’s popular Zagat-rated Rib Room – Rotisserie Extraordinaire has been the haunt of literary greats and the politically infamous for more than 50 years. Omni Royal Orleans French Quarter hotel is just 12 miles from Louis Armstrong International Airport. The hotel features a rooftop outdoor swimming pool.

A few of those naming the hotel their “favorite” over the years include David Brinkley, Luciano Pavarotti, Muhamad Ali, Arthur Hailey,( who wrote the book Hotel based on his stays at the Royal Orleans), The Rolling Stones, Jane Fonda, Robert Redford, Charlton Heston, Louis Armstrong (whose last stay in the city was at the Royal Orleans) Richard Nixon, Three Dog Night, Patti LaBelle (who received the key to the city in the Josephine Bonaparte Salon) Bette Davis (while filming the classic Hush Hush, Sweet Charlotte) Paul Newman, Mick Jagger, Don King, Lillian Carter, Chita Rivera (Broadway dance star), Aaron Neville, Rueben Stoddard (recent American Idol winner) and even Lassie the dog.

New Orleans: Commander's Palace (September 2000)

My  spouse and I dined for lunch at Commander's Palace in September 2000. The restaurant was established in 1890 in the Garden District of Uptown New Orleans. Owned by the Brennan family, it has long been one of the best regarded upscale restaurants in the city. Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse are two of its alumni. Commander's Palace has received a four-diamond rating by the American Automobile Association. It was ranked the most famous restaurant in New Orleans. Though tradition holds that Commander opened his restaurant in 1880, it was actually ten years later, in 1890, that Emile Commander established a small saloon at the corner of Washington Avenue and Coliseum Street. Within a few years he turned it into a restaurant patronized by the distinguished neighborhood families of the Garden District.[3] By 1900 Commander's Palace was attracting gourmets from all over the world. In 1944, Frank and Elinor Moran bought Commander's Palace, refurbished it and carried on its tradition of excellence with an expanded menu including many recipes still used. Thirty years later, when the Brennans took over, they redesigned the interior to complement the outdoor setting. Large windows replaced walls, and custom trellises and paintings were commissioned. In 1996, the Foundation awarded them Most Outstanding Restaurant honor. Other James Beard Awards include Lifetime Achievement Award (Ella Brennan) 2009, Outstanding Service Award 1993, Who's Who of Food and Beverage Award 1984 and Best Chef, Southeast Region (Jamie Shannon) 1999. Zagat's has listed Commander’s Palace as the “Most Popular Restaurant in New Orleans” for 18 years. In 2008, they were inducted into the Culinary Institute of America Hall of Fame.

New Orleans: Bayona (September 2000)

My spouse and I dined at Bayona for dinner in September 2000. Defying definition or simple classification, Susan Spicer's team creates food that moves across a spectrum of styles and influence. Using the freshest local ingredients to craft flavorful, balanced yet complex dishes is Bayona’s specialty. With inspiration from the Mediterranean, Asia, North Africa, France, Spain, Italy, and all around the United States, you will always find something new and innovative on our daily specials. Featuring Susan's favorites over the last 25 years, Bayona's classics menu continues to delight. A pioneer of the slow food movement, relax in the 200-year old French Quarter Cottage, or unwind in the courtyard while dining. Susan Spicer began her cooking career in New Orleans as an apprentice to Chef Daniel Bonnot at the Louis XVI Restaurant in 1979. In 1982, she opened the 60-seat bistro “Savoir Faire” in the St. Charles Hotel as Chef de Cuisine. In 1985, she worked at the New Orleans Meridien Hotel’s “Henri”. In 1986, she left to open the tiny “Bistro at Maison de Ville” in the Hotel Maison deVille. In 1990, she opened Bayona, which soon earned national attention and has been featured in numerous publications from Food and Wine, Saveur, and Food Arts, to Travel and Leisure, Bon Appetit, and The New York Times. In 2000, Susan opened Herbsaint, a casual award-winning contemporary bistro-style restaurant in the Warehouse District of New Orleans. Susan has been the guest chef at The James Beard House, The Oriental Hotel in Bangkok, the Lanesborough in London, Cunard and Crystal Cruise Lines, as well as appearing on local and national television, including an appearance on the finale of the popular Bravo series Top Chef in 2009. In May 1993 she was the recipient of the James Beard Award for Best Chef, Southeast Region and, in 1995 was chosen for the Mondavi Culinary Excellence Award. Bayona was featured as one of Restaurants and Institutions 1996 Ivy Award Winners, as well as being named to Nation’s Restaurant News Fine Dining Hall of Fame in 1998. One of the 1989 recipients of Food and Wine’s Best New Chefs award, Chef Spicer was inducted in the summer of 2008 into the magazine’s Best New Chef Hall of Fame. In March 2009, the John Folse Culinary Institute honored Chef Spicer with the Lafcadio Hearn Award given to “…culinary professionals who have had a long term positive influence on the cuisine and culture of Louisiana and the nation…” In addition Bayona received “5 Beans,” the highest rating from the New Orleans Times- Picayune., Since 1995, Bayona has been listed in the Zagat Guide for New Orleans as one of the top 5 restaurants in the city, receiving a rating of 28 points out of 30, and has repeatedly received 4 stars from Mobile Star Awards, one of two restaurants to receive this rating in New Orleans. In May 2010, Susan was inducted into the James Beard Foundation’s Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America. In May of 2010 Susan was inducted into the James Beard Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America. Her latest project is the opening of MONDO, a casual, family style restaurant which opened in June of 2010 in Chef Spicer’s neighborhood of Lakeview, where she has lived for 20 years.

New Orleans: Pat O'Brien's (September 2000)

My spouse and I enjoyed evening cocktails at Pat O'Brien's in September 2000. Their famous hurricane drinks were potent, and cause a great hangover the next morning, which was only relieved by some greasy hash browns and orange drink from McDonalds. We sat in the courtyard at a table with other guests because it was so crowded. Drinks come in huge  souvenir glasses, which you can return for a small deposit. Pat O'Brien's Bar began operation as a legal liquor establishment on December 3, 1933, at the intersection of Royal and St. Peter streets in the French Quarter. Before that, during Prohibition the bar was known as Mr. O'Brien's Club Tipperary; the password "storm's brewin'" was required to gain entrance to the establishment. In December 1942 it moved to its present location at 718 St. Peter Street, into a historic building dating from 1791. Pat O'Brien's is home to the original flaming fountain (located in the courtyard) and the hurricane cocktail. There is also a piano bar, featuring twin "dueling" pianos where local entertainers take song requests. The dueling piano bar is thought to be the first of its kind. O'Brien is reported to have invented the hurricane cocktail in the 1940s. The story of the drink’s origin holds that, due to difficulties importing scotch during World War II, liquor salesmen forced bar owners to buy up to 50 cases of their much-more-plentiful rum in order to secure a single case of good whiskey or scotch. The barmen at Pat O’Brien’s came up with an appealing recipe to reduce their bulging surplus of rum. When they decided to serve it in a hurricane glass, shaped like a hurricane lamp, the hurricane was born.

New Orleans: Cooking School (September 2000)

My spouse and I took a cooking class at the New Orleans Cooking School with Gigi Patou in September 2000. What is a roux? What is lard? Why does restaurant food taste so good?
Since 1980, the New Orleans School of Cooking has introduced countless visitors from around the world to the wonderful food and rich culture of New Orleans and Louisiana as a whole. Theentertaining cooking classes and Louisiana General Store are located in a renovated molasses warehouse built in the early 1800s in the heart of the French Quarter, 524 St. Louis Street. The school teaches the basics of Louisiana Cooking in a way you’ll never forget. Fun is a primary ingredient in our kitchen! The Cajun / Creole experts teach New Orleans specialties such as Gumbo, Jambalaya and Pralines, seasoning them with history, trivia and tall tales! We accommodate individuals, private group classes, special events, and off-site events. The Louisiana General Store is a thoughtful collection of the best locally sourced products, used and loved by our family of New Orleans School of Cooking chefs. We carry a full line of Cajun and Creole products, cookbooks, spices, gift baskets, cookware, and their famous seasoning - Joe’s Stuff.

New Orleans: Court of the Two Sisters (September 2000)

My spouse and I dined for brunch at The Court of Two Sisters in September 2000. (One of us had visited previously in 1994.) No doubt about it, this is one of the prettiest places around, thanks to the huge, wisteria-shaded courtyard and the 200-year-old building, and you should soak up that ambience by enjoying a smart cocktail or two. Then you should go out to eat. Sadly, the food is just mediocre, and let’s face it, even supermodels eventually need some personality. The daily jazz brunch buffet is nonetheless popular, and we do get the attraction, so you’d do best to stick with the basics (like simple eggs Benedict) and enjoy the company.

New Orleans: The Grill Room (September 2000)

My spouse and I dined for dinner at The Grill Room at the Windsor Court Hotel in September 2000.
In a city known to the world for its distinguished restaurants, The Grill Room is recognized as one of the world’s best. The Chef de Cuisine, Daniel Causgrove, masterfully blends contemporary southern cuisine with timeless comfort food influences. A meal is nothing less than a celebration. The Grill Room is one of New Orleans’ only four-star/four-diamond restaurant—2015 Forbes (formerly Mobil) Four Star dining award and AAA Four Diamond dining award winner. It serves contemporary American cuisine with a distinctive New Orleans flair.

New Orleans: Louis XVI (September 2000)

My spouse and I dined for dinner at Louis XVI at the St. Louis Hotel in September 2000.
This small, yet stylish St. Louis Hotel is home to one of New Orleans' premier dining experiences, Louis XVI. The dining rooms here feature an elegant style with a 1920s Parisian flair. Impeccably tuxedoed waiters complete an atmosphere of high formality. The classic French food is rich in sauces and flawless flavors. Menu specials include Fish Louisianne, Beef Wellington, and a fine Rack of Lamb and assorted cream-based soups. Desserts include many fire-lit, table side prepared dishes, certain to draw attention. The suggested choice is the Chocolate and Banana Mousse surrounded by Lady Fingers with Chantilly cream in an English rum sauce.