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WPCNR STAGE DOOR. By Sunset Boulevard . March 3, 2004: Dressed to Thrill, the one time only benefit fashion show raised over $32,000 for the White Plains Performing Arts Center Monday evening. Four captivating leading ladies of White Plains teamed with ten cool and seductive fashion icons of Manhattan to present a fashion show to remember featuring gowns costing thousands of dollars.
A PRETTY GIRL IS LIKE A MELODY: “Candy” from Fashion Avenue models a Valentino pale lemon jersey dress from the Mary Jane Denzer collection Monday evening as Fashion Avenue took over “The Center.” Photo by WPCNR FashionCam.
Angels of the White Plains Performing Arts Center threw their dollar support solidly behind the theatre ingénue again Monday evening as WPPAC raised the curtain on its first spring lineup of productions. The WPPAC Spring season launches with three prominent Westchester community group performances this week, followed by two WPPAC-mounted productions of their own the next two weeks: It Had to Be You and Fashion, the musical by WPPAC’s own Tony Stimac, Broadway legend Don Pippin, and Steve Brown.
Fashionistas Turn Out.
Paying $100 a ducat for champagne reception and show, theatre and girl watchers of White Plains sipped champagne in fluted glasses, sampled the visually appealing salmon and liver pate hors d’oeuvres and succulent goodies catered by Blue restaurant and their creator of simple elegance, Chef Pat Kelly in the curtain raiser on the balcony.
WHITE PLAINS FINEST: About 150-200 professionally attired women and sharp, cleanly pressed suits could be seen chatting each other up on the theatre concourse of the City Center Monday imbibing, ingesting, and ingratiating. They networked, politicked, and were impressed by models displaying fine jewelry from Fortunoff during the champagne warmup. Photo by WPCNR FashionCam
Models on Madison Ave Step Out.
Dressed to Thrill began with one-man piano man, Henry Aronson at the keyboard doing a springtime riff, who introduced local Westchester resident, Rupert Holmes, the Pina Colada Song and dance man, to emcee the show.
Mr. Holmes welcomed the 200 patrons (seats were filled up the middle with the last 6 rows and far and near sides vacant) and introduced White Plains avant gard favorite William Michals, star of The Scarlet Pimpernel, and bigtime favorite at the Broadway Stars extravaganza produced at the WPPAC last fall. Michals will lend his leading man voice to the WPPAC stage in two weeks, starring in Fashion beginning March 20.
Gaston Returns
Michals in cutaway black tails and open-necked white shirt, was a little Tom Jones, a little Robert Goulet, a little Steve Lawrence, but in that unmistakably winning Michals style he warmed his edgy emotional mellow tones into getting the audience in the mood for style rendering Where Is the Girl? From The Pimpernel. Michals played Gaston and The Beast in the Broadway production of Disney’s Beauty and The Beast.
The Michals Broadway charisma whet enthusiasts’ appetite for looking at beautiful women. The queens of fashion from Madison Ave made their individual turns with panache and presence, long, long legs in spike heeled pumps, their graceful body lines articulating White Plains’ Mary Jane Denzer’s luscious gowns, making splendid statements with pulchritude to music.
Just Like Bryant Park Fashion Week
Leading off in pairs walking in opposite directions in an X-shaped, spotlit path stately sashaying in the dual spotlights, duplicated in closeup in live video screens, was the cool and statuesque Aussie Blonde, Kylie Cappelli, (Mrs. Louis), in a Roberto Cavalli black jersey halter with open-laced sides, and “Cammy” in Valentino white linen corset dress with chiffon capelet sleeve.
Leading Ladies of White Plains standing up highly favorably to the supermodels onstage were Kylie Cappelli, Felicia Finley and Monica Meadows, the actresses, and well-known betterhalf of Westchester’s acting couple, Paulette Scholtman.
They were joined by supermodels: Cammy, Candy, Dori, Krista, Margie, Melissa, Michelle, Liz, Lonna and Sherry.
High fashion comes to White Plains.
Mrs. Cappelli and her ethereal entourage marched with indulgence and confidence across stage, up aisles among the patrons to display the “Denzer daring” up close and personal, complimented by Mr. Holmes’ engaging patter.
LONG COOL WOMAN IN THE RED DRESS HAS IT ALL: “Melissa” in a red crepe-back-satin halter dress from John Galliano on the runway at WPPAC with Henry Aronson working keyboards. Photo by WPCNR FashionCam.
Midway in the one-of-a-kind program, two ladies, Monica Meadows (star of the upcoming Fashion), and Felicia Finley, star of Aida at the Helen Hayes Theatre Company, graced the audience with two songs giving the “credit cards” in the audience a break.
Kathleen Gunn, Executive Director of the White Plains Downtown Business Improvement District, said of the show, “I loved it, and thought the show was great. It was a high caliber event. I thought I was in Manhattan at a Bryant Park Fashion Show.”
A striking universe of 48 outfits you do not want to know the prices of were showcased by the striking Monday night “chorus line,” the average cost of the outfits being $4,000 and up. Ms. Gunn’s favorite was Cammy modeling the Valentino yellow print jersey side-slit gown.
Tony Stimac, director of the show, an expert at pulling together these one-of-a-kind events, said the show had sold 320 tickets as of Monday, and Wednesday morning said it had raised $30,000 for the theatre. Tony knows everybody, and has the persuasive ability to pick up the phone and, say, “we’re doing a show, we’d love to have you, you want to be in it?” and the stars come out. White Plains citizens should watch for the next one. They are something else.
Mingling with the Newsmakers
Yours truly, Sunset B., working the crowd got the word from a mingling Louis Cappelli that he has signed Office Max to occupy a portion of the City Center, to join coming signed partners, the Atlanta Bread Factory, Applebee’s, Barnes & Noble, Circuit City, Filene’s Basement, Legal Seafood, Target and Zanaro’s to augment his City Center showplace on Main Street.
The Super Developer said he only had 25,000 more square feet of space to sell at the City Center, and said ”suitors are lined up.”
THE SUPER DEVELOPER AND THE SUPER MODELS: The Super Developer, City Center impressario, Louis Cappelli, right, was on the scene at showtime. He is chatting with Gary Blum, left, President and Chief Creative Officerof The Laurus Group of Harrison, who told WPCNR his company has been appointed the advertising agency for the White Plains Performing Arts Center. Photo by WPCNR FashionCam
Blum said he was commissioned at the end of last week to prepare posters, marketing materials, identify markets, and handle direct response and possible direct mail campaigns for promoting attendance at the theater. Presently, he said the assignments are being executed on a project-by-project basis. He pointed to the new posters hanging in the lobby as some of his first efforts. He said local television and print ads were a possibility.
Asked if he would be handling Helen Hayes Theatre Company and Queens Theater in the Park, two of the White Plains Performaing Arts Center partner-theatres, Mr. Blum, said that was “under discussion.”
Local movers and shakers who sponsored the event were of course, Mary Jane Denzer, Fortunoff, Shalz Cadillac, Papa-Razzi, Blue, and Trotters.
Local Musical Groups test the City Center this week. A Busy Month.
Three outstanding local organizations present classic contemporary movie music, including a classical performance by young musicians and local Arab-American musicians presenting performances that will demonstrate the full acoustical range of the White Plains Performing Arts Center.
Tomorrow evening, Westchester’s Philharmonia Virtuosi will perform music from “Master and Commander” March 4 at 7:30 P.M. Philharmonia Virtuosi will feature Mela Tenenbaum on violin; Alexandr Tenenbaum on violin; Dortothy Lawson, cello; Robert Igliss, oboe; and Richard Kapp on piano. For tickets, priced from $30, children under 18, free, may be purchased at 914-693-5595.
Philarmonia Virtuosi will be followed into City Center stage by the Music Conservatory of Westchester Mentoring Orchestra, under direction of Anthony Aibel on Friday night for an O-T-O performance at 8 P.M. Tickets are $5, and my be purchased at 914-761-3900.
Ali Hamideh, a long-time member of the Arab community in Westchester will perform with his Arab-American musicians on Saturday, March 6 at 8 P.M. They will present classical and contemporary Middle Eastern music. Mr. Hamideh was recently featured in Salaam: An Arab-American Portrait, a photography exhibition of Westchester‘s Arab community. Tickets are $10, and may be purchased by calling 1-888-977-2250.
Comedy and Song and Dance Return.
Next Tuesday evening, bigtime Broadway entertainment returns with Joseph Bologna and Renee Taylor starring in the comedy, It Had to Be You, beginning March 9 at 7 PM, and playing the 10th, 11th, 12th, and 13th at 8 PM with Matinees on Thursday the11th and Sunday the 14th at 2.
It Had to Be You is followed by the Stimac-Pippin-Brown musical, Fashion, debuting Saturday, March 20 at 8, followed by a Sunday Matinee at 2 on the 21st. Fashion runs at “The Center” on March 23 at 7, then March 24, 25, 26,27, and April 1,2,3 at 8 P.M, with matinees at 2 on March 28, 31, and April 4.
