Celebrity Watching

New York City is a good place for seeing celebrities of all types.  Film, stage, television, music, literary, political and the notorious. 

This past weekend, Sally was visiting to celebrate her 24th birthday in New York style.  On Friday, we attended the first preview of Sylvia, a Broadway revival of a 1995 play.  The story revolves around two empty-nesters trying to find their way forward when a dog joins their lives.  Comedy, drama and fleas ensue.  Mathew Broderick stars with three other strong actors covering 5 roles, including Sylvia, a dog. The play was oddly parallel to our own lives--husband named Greg wants a dog, wife is in teaching, someone's crotch gets sniffed . . . repeatedly.  Oddly parallel. 

Robert Stella, Annleigh Ashford, Julie White, Matthew Brokerick

On Saturday, we ventured to the Hudson train yards for The New Yorker Festival where we saw an interview with Jason Segel, in the style of Inside the Actors Studio.  You may recognize his face from the TV series "How I Met Your Mother" or the film "Forgetting Sara Marshall" (which he wrote, saying it was very autobiographical).  Jason Segel was funny; he seemed genuine and he charmed the audience.  He loves the Muppets because the characters are so kind, and he is making more of an effort to be nice to the people around him. Whenever he is talking with people, he focuses on them and keeps his cell phone in his pocket . . . which he can do because now he has an Apple Watch.  (Rim hot. Audience stops texting and laughs.)

Jason Segel

At the Segel interview, we sat near Susan Sarandon.  The actress was spotted by Susan, who acknowledges being awful at recognizing celebrities in person.  Sarandon looked just like her picture, below.

Susan Sarandon, doing her impression of Matthew McConaughey

 

The weekend finished with seeing Laurie Anderson and her new performance piece--a combination of sound, sculpture, and poetry--called Habeas Corpus.  The subject was a freed Guantanamo prisoner who collaborated with the artist.  He appeared virtually from an undisclosed location in West Africa.  Of course, the performance was about so much more--oppression, survival, freedom.  Greg enjoyed the performance venue:  a large, hangar-like building, no lights except thousands of small pieces of light moving slowly across the arched ceiling, walls and floor of the space.  Like watching stars and galaxies float through the empty darkness of the universe.  Susan enjoyed leaving.

Mohammed el Gharani and Laurie Anderson

Like we said, NYC is good for celebrity watching.