Our Broadway Stars Shine Bright!
Carole Demas, Ian Herman, and Stuart Allyn were absolutely brilliant—charming, cooperative, and patient—even as we navigated months of challenges leading up to the event. From contradictory communications to mismanagement at the venue, we endured it all with humor, knowing laughter was the best antidote to frustration. As you can see above, Carole always has been scrappy!
The Journey: The Bad and the Good
1. The Sign of the Times
The Bad News: The event sign revealed a scheduling conflict that caused volunteers to scramble through the kitchen for access. Setup didn’t start until guests were already arriving. Additionally, our piano tuner had to adjust his schedule to arrive at 7:30 a.m. due to the wedding party’s early use of the space.
The Good News: Mark Kaplan shared, “My favorites were the original song [Carole] performed toward the end, Try to Remember from The Fantasticks, and Beautiful City from Godspell.”
2. A Misplaced Welcome
The Bad News: A volunteer arriving at 5:30 p.m. for setup was redirected to get a drink across the street by Strathallan staff. I was asked to wait in my car for 15 minutes despite needing to unload event materials.
The Good News:
Alyssa Heine loved “the Fireflies song (where did that come from?), the James Taylor number, and Try to Remember. The Broadway team was so lovely and generous!”
3. A Blurred Vision
The Bad News: This is a blurry photo of our long term professional photographer, who decided to take the night off from picture taking. Which is why we have very few photos.
The Good News: Bonnie Abrams appreciated the humor and poignancy of the evening, noting, “Her parody of Memory was brilliant, as was Try to Remember and Big Yellow Taxi—a perfect choice for an environmental gala.”
4. Musical Chairs
The Bad News: One young guest was repeatedly displaced from his seat at dinner, creating an unfortunate and awkward situation.
The Good News: Cathy Gipner shared her highlights: “I loved the funny version of Memory, along with the James Taylor and Joni Mitchell songs.”
5. Town Tropics
The Bad News: Carole’s lips were almost glued together once or twice because it was so hot and dry upstairs. Some left because of the terrible climate control, in spite of clear instructions to staff beforehand about opening windows between the wedding and performance. Great solution? The door downstairs was opened driving hot air up.
The Good News: Donna Silverman remarked, “Over the Rainbow was stunning, but every song Carole sang was equally beautiful.”
6. A Costume Caper
The Bad News: Moments before the performance, Carole’s costume was discovered missing, having been mistakenly taken by the wedding party. It was retrieved just in time for the show.
The Good News: Robert Corby, a long-time supporter, shared: “The Tree Poem by Joyce Kilmer and the frog song were wonderful. Carole is such an incredible storyteller. I’ve never thought of people over 70 as sexy, but Carole is so damn sexy!”
7. A Picture-Perfect Moment
The Bad News: While photography wasn’t permitted during the performance, one rogue photo surfaced, capturing Carole mid-performance.
The Good News: Anonymous Guest wrote: “I meant to share with you what a wonderful time I had and to thank you for inviting me. The event was beautiful. Carole’s performance was so lively and engaging; I could have listened all night! It was inspiring to see the shared enthusiasm and care for the Arboretum Vernal Ponds Project.”
Reflections
The Challenges: Organizing the Gala amidst election weekend, Veterans Day, and the venue’s scheduling missteps was a monumental task. The event came at a high cost—$118 per guest—and my evening concluded with a literal bang when a hit-and-run driver totaled my car.
The Silver Lining: Despite setbacks, the Gala raised awareness, brought joy, and increased funds in our Vernal Ponds Savings Account—just enough for our first pond!
Acknowledgements
Thank you to everyone who enjoyed, supported and contributed to this event.
Special thanks to Elena Hollands, who not only probably knows the anonymous donor who underwrote special guests, but stepped in to take photos, and scurried around helping everywhere she saw a need. She also bid on and got the amazing flower arrangement and tropical tree donated for auction by Galleas Florists and Greenhouse.
Rob Corby and Lisa Cove, did a little Q & A about the Arboretum and Wildlife Sanctuary vernal ponds, I appreciate you.
Our volunteers Cathleen Brauen and Bonnie Garner (board members), Em Gang, Jordan Hollands, Aashwin Katiyar, Vera Rose, Maddie Ross, and Wynne Thompson did the best thing any volunteer could do – they helped until the very end, including packing up my car with all the decorations and frogabilia (which Matthew and I got to unpack at the shop to which the poor old 2006 Prius was towed the next day. How lovely of them not to charge me)
Son Matthew Fass was a dear, driving up from Kingston to help professional sound producer Stuart Allyn on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday with carrying, setting up, and breaking down Stuart’s 10 boxes of equipment, weighing a mere one thousand pounds. [Un]fortunately he was not dressed like this:
Daughter (Sarah) Lindsay Graham was incredible, arranging, corresponding, inviting, negotiating, publicizing, and generally exhausting herself.
I couldn’t have put it better myself!
Above all, our deepest gratitude goes to Carole Demas, Ian Herman, and Stuart Allyn for their extraordinary generosity, dedicating so much time and effort to this event. Their professionalism and grace amidst all the chaos were nothing short of inspiring. The magical connection they created was unforgettable—and to think, I knew Carole way back when…
Together, we’re making an impact.
Due to our status as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization (EIN# 84-4836099) and our lack of provision of goods or services to you for your contribution, the full amount of your donation is deductible for federal income tax purposes.
