The Iveys!

Wendy and I were the hosts this year—which means you have to dress. Getting ready was something. As Amanda Wingfield says in The Glass Menagerie: “We have to wear something don’t we?”

David Brewster, Star Tribune

Our first idea was white: white tails and tie for me, and a white satin gown with a white boa trimmed satin coat and white cloche for Wendy. This, however, was not to be; time flew and before we knew it the “week of” had arrived. So I opted for a classic black tux and we went into the Jungle’s costume storage for Wendy’s gown and found a stunning tulle creation that had been donated a couple of months before – pale blue and tan tulle over a tan satin underskirt and a bodice that looked as if it were made of scrunched paper—so strange and unusual, like something Tilda Swinton might wear!

The “night of” I discovered the tux rental shirt was too small and the collar choked me! So I grabbed a white shirt I bought at Costco two days before, jumped in my car, ran over to the theater and covered the buttons with black gaff tape, raced back home, dressed and went to the Iveys! No one the wise.

Great fun at the show. As you know, Wendy won the Lifetime Achievement Award. All day we were bantering about who was going to win it – I kept telling her that it was definitely going to be her (I knew, of course) but she said, ”No, it couldn’t be me; I’ll be changing for The Full Monty (the number performed at the end of the show) so it can’t be me!“

And then when she came from the dressing room to the stage left wing where we were all watching the video of her life in the theater, she was so moved – we all were! And the Jungle‘s Mary’s Wedding won an Ivey for best production (all elements). I am so proud of the whole Jungle production team led by Jungle Associate Artistic Director Joel Sass (his concept, direction, costume and set design), Barry Browning (the Jungle’s extraordinary resident lighting designer), Sean Healey (sound designer), Carl Flink (choreographer) and Greg Brosofke (composer). Not to mentioned the exquisite performances by Alayne Hopkins and Sam Bardwell. 

The Jungle is now the proud recipient of FOUR Iveys, two for Joel (the other was for his set design for Last of the Boys), one for Bradley Greenwald for his splendid performance in I Am My Own Wife (directed by Joel!) and one for Sean’s sound design for Shipwrecked (also a Joel Sass production!). Kudos to the artists who make the theater!