Pleasingly Put Together
First Nighters cheered as Putting It Together opened the season at South Coast Repertory on September 18, directed by the multi-talented Nick DeGruccio with a cast of five Sondheim-savvy stars (Harry Groener, Mary Gordon Murray, Matt McGrath, Niki Scalera and Dan Callaway).
Betty and S.L. Huang, Honorary Producers of the show with the Huang Family Foundation, were among the first to congratulate DeGruccio. For them, opening night was a culmination of exciting events. As underwriters, they had attended rehearsals and witnessed the play’s progress. “It was a memorable time for us,” Betty said. “I encourage everyone to become an Honorary Producer and have this experience!”
As others gathered around the beaming director, words of praise were heard: “So glamorous...” “Beautifully staged...” “Great acting—and singing...”
Rick Smetanka, Partner of Haskell & White LLP, Corporate Honorary Producer, agreed as he and his wife, Cheri, caught up with actor McGrath. “The talented cast is superb and the performance is very clever,” Smetanka said.
The look of the party onstage carried over to the one offstage, where life-sized cutouts of urbane New Yorkers lined Ela’s Terrace; black, silver and mirrored reflection balls hung from the trees; shimmering black and white linens topped with mirrored vases decorated the party tables—and DJ Henry Martinez played Broadway show tunes as party-goers sipped Champagne Cosmopolitans created with Korbel champagne (generously donated by Young’s Market).
Bette Aitken enjoyed the party with her husband, SCR Board President Wylie Aitken, just six days after she chaired the SCR Gala Nothing But Blue Skies. “It has been a week of glitz and glamour, and no one wants it to end!”
And so, late into the evening, after sampling dinner delicacies from all around Manhattan, First Nighters enjoyed two dessert choices—Big Apple strudel and New York style cheesecake—and partied on as sounds of Broadway wafted through the night air.
