Ways to Stay Festive This Year
With a rather amended Thanksgiving celebration coming our way next week, I want to give you a few notions on how to keep this beloved holiday festive, even during these extremely challenging circumstances.
First, flowers and greenery always, always help to lift spirits. Autumn provides a bounty of color and texture with which to decorate our homes and tables. I recommend keeping to tradition, no matter how outside the norm things are, and placing pieces of our natural environment indoors.
Nic Faitos, co-founder of Starbright Floral Design, “the official florist of the city that never sleeps,” shares some great ideas with me on my “Bagels and Broadway” radio show this Sunday at 2. Starbright Floral Design
How about attending a wonderful show featuring amazing talents from Broadway next Saturday night?
A Toast to Broadway, presented by the Ridgefield Playhouse in Ridgefield, Connecticut gets underway at 8 pm. You can enjoy the event from the comfort of your home, or you can attend a “watch party” at the theatre, complete with some lovely perks, in a completely Covid-secure environment.
Tony winner Debbie Gravitte created this lovely evening, and she will perform as well. A Toast to Broadway
And now, for some serious shopping! You know Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday.
Now, there is Artists Sunday, a way to support artists and receive discounts on products, as well as score some unique holiday gifts. The brainchild of photographer Christopher Sherman, Artists Sunday is a movement, as well as a portal for artists to market themselves year-round. Artists Sunday
Debbie Gravitte, Christoher Sherman, producer-turned-poet Carol Ostrow (“Poems from My Pandemic Pen”), and Nic Faitos all join me on “Bagels and Broadway” this Sunday.
Listen on WNYM from 2-3 PM or on podcast following the broadcast. Wishing you and yours a healthy, safe, and happy Thanksgiving!
Valerie Smaldone is a 5-time Billboard Magazine Award winner and is well known for her unprecedented success holding the #1 on-air position in the New York radio market on 106.7 Life-FM, an iHeart station. She has hosted, produced, and created several award-winning nationally syndicated programs featuring in-depth interviews with stars like Paul McCartney, Celine Dion, Rod Stewart, Elton John and Mariah Carey among others. Her radio talk show "Bagels and Broadway" highlighted theatre and food personalities. She is an accomplished interviewer and voice artist heard on commercials, narrations, promos and audiobooks, as well as a sought after live announcer.
Most recently, Valerie produced and directed a film, The Thursday Night Club, featuring pop diva Gloria Gaynor in her movie acting debut. She is one of the creators and producers of a docu-series, Divine Renovation, starring Erik Estrada, on streaming networks soon.
