We’re in Phase 4 of reopening New York and it couldn’t come at a more perfect time. As the days get hotter, we have some great ideas for you to cool off at some of our favorite venues.

Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Katonah, NY

Live Concert on the Lawn Series beginning August 1

Caramoor kicks off its four part Concert on the Lawn series with Charles Turner & Uptown Swing. You may recognize them from the late night session at Dizzy’s Club at Jazz at Lincoln Center. Upcoming concerts include performances by Latin Grammy® nominee and Latin Grammy Award Winner, Flor de Toloache, the first all-female Mariachi and by Beginner’s Ear, an immersive listening experience. Click here to learn more about Caramoor’s Concert on the Lawn programming.

Looking for musical escapes from the comfort of your home? Caramoor has a series of livestreams featuring a variety of artists and musical styles. Click here to see Caramoor’s upcoming calendar of events.

Wave Hill Public Gardens, The Bronx, NY

Opens July 30

Wave Hill reopened on July 30 and we couldn’t be more excited to visit this hidden gem in The Bronx. Advance ticket reservation is required and begins each Monday, so make sure to make your plans as soon as possible. For the first two weeks, admission is free. You’ll wander across 28-acres which include gardens, greenhouses and woodlands and enjoy more than 4,000 varieties of plants. If you haven’t been to Wave Hill, make sure to add it to your list. Click here to visit this Garden of Wonders nestled in The Bronx.

In between visits, or if you can’t make it in person, make sure to check out their virtual programs. You’ll find Adult Workshops, Garden Notes, and Nature Expeditions. Click here for Branching Out, Wave Hill’s virtual programs.

SOCIALLY DISTANCED WEDDING IDEAS IN NEW YORK

If you were planning to get married in the Summer or Fall of 2020, you may be asking yourself “Should I cancel my wedding?” We are thrilled to say that the answer is not necessarily!

We’ve been talking to our couples, to wedding planners, and to our venues to find out what they’re doing, planning and seeing with their weddings.

Couples are adjusting their plans, with many of them holding smaller weddings (or microweddings) to accommodate social distancing and limited party sizes. Wedding planners are helping them find outdoor venues, and in many cases, planning a second, larger wedding or first anniversary party once restrictions have been lifted.

Caramoor and Wave Hill, two of our partner venues and consistently high on the list of New York’s best wedding venues, have created innovative ways to help their couples start their new lives.

NY Weddings PACKAGES in the Time of COVID

CARAMOOR – A Westchester Wedding Venue in Lush Greenery and History

Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts is a gorgeous destination with spectacular gardens and grounds. The weddings team has crafted special packages perfect for up to 50 guests. Starting with site rental and toast packages, there are upgrades that can be added to help create a magical, intimate wedding perfect for the celebrating couple. More information on Caramoor’s 2020 Wedding Packages.

WAVE HILL – Bronx Wedding Venue with Spectacular Views of the Hudson River

Wave Hill is a spectacular garden in the Bronx. This hidden gem boasts a variety of gardens and an incredible view of the Hudson River. The wedding team has created intimate packages, perfect for groups from 20 – 100 people, that include rentals, a champagne toast, and bar bites with optional upgrades to enhance the experience.

620 LOFT & GARDENS – NYC Wedding Venue with Extraordinary views of Fifth Avenue and St. Patrick’s Cathedral

An incredible rooftop garden complete with a reflecting pool make this an idea venue for a summer wedding. The wedding team has created wedding packages for a five-hour event for up to 100 people (maximum based upon current guidelines and restrictions). More information on 620 Loft & Garden’s 2020 wedding packages.

Have questions about socially distanced wedding catering in New York?

Fill our the form below so we can learn more about your special day and your vision. A member of our team will reach back shortly.

A Covid Wedding Wave Hill

E&E COVID WEDDING WAVE HILL The COVID-19 pandemic has been a challenge for couples looking to share the start of their new lives together with

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Planner Perspective: Events During Covid

For the past several months, as we’ve stayed at home and missed so many of the events that mark our spring and summer, we’ve been

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Top Tips for Saying “I Do” During Covid

Our wedding specialists have been busy! Couples are still eager to get married and we’ve got the top tips for saying “I Do” during Covid

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Socially Distanced Wedding Ideas in New York

Getting married during the time of COVID-19? Here are some of the best wedding venues in New York offering special packages for Socially Distanced Weddings.

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Each month, our Great Performances menus feature seasonal ingredients. It’s our way of celebrating the earth and bringing our special touch to every menu.

Grilled Fairytale Eggplant and Cherry Tomato Salad

Ingredients

• 8 Fairytale eggplants, halved lengthwise
• 4 cups ripe cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup torn fresh basil
• Sesame oil
• Rice wine vinegar
• 2 slices good quality bread
• salt and pepper

Procedure

• Tear bread into small pieces and toast in 350 F oven until golden brown.
• Brush eggplant with sesame oil and grill, cut side down, over high heat grill until just tender.
• Cut grilled eggplant on bias into 2-inch pieces.
• Combine all ingredients and toss gently. Let sit for 10 minutes at room temperature.
• Divide between 6 plates and season with salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature or slightly warm.

Wedding Planners Discuss the Future of Weddings

GP Talks: Wine Down Wednesday

You’ve got pressing questions, we’ve rounded up experts to give you answers!

We’ve assembled a panel of incredible wedding planners to discuss the future of weddings.

The panel (full bios below):

• Annie Lee – Annie Lee is principal planner of Daughter of Design, recently named a top planner of the world by Harper’s Bazaar. Annie is also author of Learn to Speak Wedding: Flashcards for Beginners and founder of Plannie.com where you can hire an event planner by the hour. 

• Emily Reifel – Emily Reifel has been running all the Social Events at The Plaza Hotel for 12 years. She started in the hospitality industry at the front desk of The Waldorf=Astoria where she realized that she had a passion for events.  A native of Seattle, Washington her dance background was what originally led her to her new home of New York City.  Now she oversees some of the most luxurious weddings, birthday parties and bar & bat mitzvah’s for anywhere from 100 to 500 guests!  When she is not busy running events you can probably find her over at Lincoln Center supporting her love for the arts!

• Guerdy Abraira – Guerdy has been in the wedding industry for over 17 years. Guerdys “back-of-the-house” background in hotel services and catering has granted her to have full capacity in executing destination and local weddings from hotel room blocks to creating unique food and beverage experiences. She guides her team to not look at the trends but rather develop truly unique executions for clients. Her ability to not only fully plan weddings but also create full-bodied conceptual design for her clients has been a game-changer in her ability to offer a unique multi-dimensional array of services. This Haitian/French/American’s global palette and aesthetic also has played a large role in her ability to facilitate destination weddings for those looking for destination wedding experiences 

• Marcy Blum –  An “eventista,” Marcy Blum is an expert in entertaining, etiquette, food, and wine. She has been producing creative, magical, and personal events for over 30 years, launching Marcy Blum Associates in 1986 and is frequently noted as an innovator in the events industry. Marcy infuses her culinary arts background with her humorous and sane approach to entertaining, to create extraordinary memories for her clients. 

  A graduate of the Performing Arts High School and the prestigious Culinary Institute of America, Marcy produces events where the entertainment and décor are elegantly theatrical, the food is delicious and creative, the wines are thoughtfully chosen, and the service is beyond spectacular.

• Maria Seremetis – Maria Seremetis, Founder and President of Maria Seremetis Events, has been an authority on event planning in NYC for over two decades, planning hundreds of events around the world. Growing up in a Greek family, where gatherings of 20-40 with shared laughter and mezze each weekend was the norm, a penchant for entertaining was born. Maria honed a talent for event design and planning through her roles in catering and hospitality in her father’s restaurants, and in her merchandising role at Donna Karan.  Her passion for meaningful connections, collaborations, and experiential story-telling through entertaining – and always, laughter, are at the heart of each and every client project.  A trusted source on all matters of hospitality, her meticulous attention to detail, style and quality, and her collaborative approach in working with top vendors in the industry, are her professional trademarks.

   

Moderated by Amanda DiUglio, Great Performances

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Curious as to how Great Performances is handling weddings during the age of covid? Click here. 

Any man can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a dad.

Pam Brown

This year, we’re especially thankful for the dads in our lives. They wears so many hats (or ties!): guide, mentor, coach, tutor, sage, shoulder. We’re learning new ways to celebrate dads this year, even if it is a little trickier than setting up the VCR.

And for those whose fathers are no longer with us, we honor them and celebrate their memories. It’s another way of keeping them close to us and passing on their legacy to future generations.

Below, we’ve gathered stories from some of our fathers and sons across Great Performances as they remember their fathers.

Check out more Father’s Day photos and a Father’s Day wish list.

Vincent Palumbo, General Manager, CPS Events at The Plaza

I am extremely fortunate to observe Father’s Day as both a father and son.

As a Son

I’m not sure if it was my dad bringing the old world with him or the insecurity of a new country that seemed so big to him, but whatever the reason,  my father made it a point to keep us close to him and close to each other. This was especially true with dinner. Every night at 6 pm, no matter where we were or what we were doing, we knew to come home and have dinner together as a family. All four of us kids were there. My mother would send one of us to buy the bread (usually a source of contention between the siblings on who would go).  The weeknight dinner always consisted of a pasta (usually with lentils, chickpeas, green beans) and then a protein served family style in the middle of the table. As I got a little older, my dad would pour me  half a glass of the Carlo Rossi jug wine and mix it the other half with sprite (I believe Italian Americans invented the modern wine cooler, but that’s a different story). We would finish up with my dad usually slicing up some fruit and sharing with us. This would be the longest course, usually due to the stories he would tell us about growing up in Italy. This is where he truly shined, with each story leaving us in stitches before he even got to the ending. Throughout the years, we heard some of these stories’ multiple times, but they never got old and always ending with us laughing as if we heard it for the first time.

At that moment, it just looked like we were having a delicious meal,  but it’s dual purpose, intentional or not, was that it set the tone and strengthened the roots that we have as a family. Today, as we lead our own lives with our own families, we are as close as ever. Even now during the occasional Sunday together, we don’t dare show up late to my parent’s house and yes all four adult children still cannot agree on one simple question…..”who is getting the bread?”

As a Father

The Covid-19 pandemic has no doubt effected many families. Times like these have dramatically affected all aspects of our lives. My 15 year old son Domenico is a resident at the Center for Discovery, which is a residence for children with special needs. Due to this pandemic, we have not been able to visit him

or have him home on weekends since March. While this has been extremely difficult for my wife & I, the steps that the Center and it’s staff have taken to ensure the safety and well-being of our son and it’s other residents has been a source of comfort for all us and for that I am extremely grateful to them. This week they are starting to allow families to visit, which would make a truly special Father’s Day gift for me.

At this stage of my life, with two kids of my own, through the example that my father & my father in law have set…..I’ve learned you never stop being a father even when the children become adults (maybe especially). For that I can only say thank you to both and  propose a toast to all of the dads on a healthy and safe holiday. (Carlo Rossi wine optional.)

Justin Schwartz, Executive Chef – Production, Great Performances

Years ago my father took a job in the city. This was after the great recession and it seemed everything was headed towards recovery, including our family. For Father’s Day that year I got him a wallet, perfect for the city. Small, sleek and really well made with a front pocket for a metro card. He of course loved it, and I would swell with pride every time I saw him use it, and he did use it, every day from that day on until he passed away some years later. He was diagnosed with cancer while I was in college and passed away just after I graduated from culinary school. I can still remember the look on his face when I graduated, pure joy seeing his baby pursuing his passion. What could be better for a father?

After everything was over, on an afternoon when my brother and I missed him terribly, we agreed to go through his things. Looking back this was probably the first time we began to mourn him together, as a family. We came across the wallet, still full of the various pieces of his life, and I immediately claimed it  as my own. I still use it today and I think of him every time I hold it in my hand. I even left a card of his inside. Seeing something with his name printed on it, even an old credit card, brings back the look of his face, the smell of his hair. Sometimes I just take it out and hold it in my hand when I miss him.

When I miss him, a trip to the local diner brings me back. I remember on Father’s Day, we would go on outings and he would order—without fail—a chicken salad sandwich on toasted rye with lettuce, onion, a full sour pickle on the side, and a Diet Coke with a slice of lemon. Before coming home, we’d get chocolate and vanilla swirl frozen yogurt with mixed nuts. Now that I have kids, we’ll go to the local diner and I find myself ordering his meal. As my children watch me eat it, I wonder what they are thinking and if this food will do the same for them as it does for me.

Ronnie Davis, Managing Director, Great Performances

I inherited my love of cooking from my father, who was a prominent caterer in my native Philadelphia. Like him—even though I feed people for a living—the most relaxing thing I do in my off-time is cook, especially for others. We loved to cook at home if we had a rare Father’s Day off from doing an event. I loved making Mussels, Clams & Calamari Marinara for him using an old family recipe from our Italian neighbors in South Philly. The secret was in the sauce, which could be made a few days in advance and frozen. Using a heavy pot, like a Dutch oven, the results were always perfect.

Some of the fathers on our team have shared their wishes for Father’s Day and photos with them and their kids.

Rob Valencia
Culinary Director, Great Performances

 

As the father of a 19 month old toddler, for Father’s Day, I’d like for him to at least sleep late or go to bed on time.

 

Joel Rivera
Director Of Facilities, Great Performances

Running shoes! I need to get off my cheeks!

Mike Warren
Director Of Catering, CPS Events At The Plaza

Me and my boys at my wedding.  Love wins.  They love me for who I am and I love them unconditionally.

Mark Rivera
Purchasing Manager, Great Performances

   

GP TALKS: THE IMPACT OF CORONAVIRUS ON CATERING STAFF

You’ve got pressing questions about the impact of Coronavirus on catering staff, so we’ve rounded up experts to give you answers!

The world has changed. Events and galas, which provided thousands of jobs for catering staff, often comprising artists, actors, singers and other creatives, have disappeared. Even as we slowly recover, there’s concern about what the future of catering and events will look like and what that means to the creative community who once perceived New York as a cultural center.

We’ve assembled a panel of incredible individuals across a variety of creative fields, all who have been a part of the Great Performances catering team and two notable catering historians. Along with Ronnie Davis, Managing Director of Great Performances, they discuss the joys and challenges of their roles, the impact of Coronavirus, and what they see for the future.

THE PANEL

MATT & TED LEE

HOTBOX

Food Writers & Cookbook Authors

Charleston, SC raised brothers Matt Lee and Ted Lee have had a twenty-year career in food-writing, featuring three award-winning southern cookbooks. Their latest book, Hotbox, is a work of non-fiction covering the catering industry and its roots in New York’s theatre community. The New York Times Book Review called Hotbox “The Kitchen Confidential of big-ticket catering.” Matt, his wife Gia, and their three sons live in Charleston, SC. Ted lives with his wife, the artist E.V. Day, in Brooklyn, NY.

WES MASON

GREAT PERFORMANCES

Events Coordinator

Wes is a Brooklyn based actor, singer, and guitarist who was born and raised in Norfolk, Virginia. He possesses an instinct for dialects and impersonations as well as vocal abilities that have earned him a reputation as a genre-defying artist from opera to rock. In opera, he is celebrated for his performances in American works such as Breaking the Waves, As One, and Three Decembers. On film, he recently appeared in the thriller Last Moment of Clarity. This past February, he made his Off-Broadway debut as Wotan/Gunther/Hagen in On Site Opera’s production of Das Barbecü.” This fall marks Wes’s sixth year at GP.

APRIL HENRY

GREAT PERFORMANCES

April Josephine (Henry)  has been with GP since the fall of 2017. Originally from Southern California, April moved to the Big Apple to pursue her theatrical career and continue to learn and grow as an artist. Select recent theater credits include West Side Story (Anita) Houston Texas; Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer National tour (Dance Captain) McCoy Rigby Entertainment; Up Here, La Jolla Playhouse. April also instructs dance, and choreographs youth theater productions, and hopes to combine her passions for both youth and the arts in an impactful way, while living in her favorite city.

AUBREY ELSON

GREAT PERFORMANCES

Captain

Aubrey is also originally from Southern California, and is an actress, singer, and dancer who has worked all over the country and internationally as well. She has performed and traveled with two national tours, at Madison Square Garden, as well as several regional musicals, plays, and readings. She just finished earning her MFA in Theatre Performance from Florida Atlantic University several months early because of Covid-`19, which she left NYC and GP to pursue. She is also a prolific audiobook producer and teaches Acting and Speech at the collegiate level.  She has been with GP since 2009.

NATHAN MATTICKS

GREAT PERFORMANCES

American baritone Nathan Matticks is rapidly establishing himself as one of opera’s brightest hopefuls. A 2018 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Regional Finalist and District Winner, last season was punctuated by a Carnegie Hall main stage debut in Vaughn Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem and Rutter’s Mass of the Children. Matticks joined Florida Grand Opera for their 2019/2020 season as Conte Robinson in Cimarosa’s rarely performed Matrimonio di Segreto, covering the title roles in Rigoletto and Don Giovanni. He was with GP for the past three years.

Moderated by Ronnie Davis, Great Performances, Managing Director

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Each month, our Great Performances menus feature seasonal ingredients. It’s our way of celebrating the earth and bringing our special touch to every menu.

CELEBRATE FIRST OF THE SEASON PEAS

Ingredients

• 1 pound shelled fresh English peas

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves

• 4 tbsp sweet (unsalted) butter, divided

• 1/4 cup finely diced white onion

• Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Procedure

1. Heat a saute pan over medium high heat. Add onion and 1 tbsp butter and cook for 2 minutes.

2. Add English peas, 1 cup water and a pinch of salt.

3. Cook until water dissolves. Remove from heat and add remaining butter, mint and parsley.

4. Season to taste with sea salt and fresh pepper. Serve warm.

We spoke with several of our brides who have had their weddings impacted by the Coronavirus. From planning weddings in the heart of New York City at The Plaza to pastoral weddings on farmland upstate, the brides we’ve talked to have had their carefully planned and joyfully anticipated weddings change dramatically. But through it all, they’ve been resilient and flexible, embracing new ways to celebrate their love.

Virtual Wedding Ceremonies

Liana had planned a May wedding at The Plaza in New York City for more than 200 guests. But in March, she was forced to cancel her original plans and come up with a new solution. Instead of completely postponing getting married, she’s opting for a virtual ceremony this year and will celebrate with family and friends in 2021.

Our original wedding was planned for May 2020 at The Plaza in New York City. We had more than 200 friends and family planning to join us at our celebration and we were excited at the prospect. But as we watched the news and how the Coronavirus pandemic was sweeping around the glove, we made the decision in March to change the date. We had hoped to get married on our original date but while the city clerk’s office has started offering virtual meetings to acquire a marriage license, they didn’t have any availability until June. So we’ll have our meeting with them in June and then hopefully hold a virtual ceremony soon after.

It’s been challenging keeping our friends and family informed, and we’re disappointed we can no longer use our beautiful invitations. But I’m so grateful for the patience and kindness of everyone involved, especially my mom, and of course, our planners, Emily Reifel and Maxine Kaboll.

We did postpone our wedding celebration to June 2021 and we hope everything is able to stay as planned with one exception: we will already be married! So maybe we will do a vow renewal ceremony instead.

My advice to couples planning their wedding now is to give yourself plenty of time, to try to be flexible, and to enjoy it.

It can be really stressful (especially doing some things for a second time) so make sure to check in with yourself, and talk to someone if you’re feeling under pressure.

Postponed Weddings

Gianna had planned a wedding for April 4, 2020 at The Plaza. She had to quickly change her plans but worked closely with the team to pick a new wedding date and plans to enjoy more time being engaged.

Our original plans were for April 4, 2020. We’d picked that date when we got engaged in December of 2017, and were so looking forward to it! We loved the ring of 4/4/2020. We decided to change our plans maybe 2-3 weeks before, right when the Bay Area/New York were starting to Shelter in Place. We live in California, so a good majority of our friends and family were flying from CA to NY for the wedding, and we didn’t want to make anybody feel obliged/uncomfortable traveling to a wedding across the country in such a scary/uncertain time.

We postponed our wedding to early December. We really cannot wait for our winter New York wedding!! We got engaged in NY in December of 2017 and celebrated at The Plaza, so it really feels right book-ending the whole engagement journey/experience this way. Emily at The Plaza, our wedding planner/designers at Jes Gordon (Jes & Kait), and our Officiant, Susanna, were absolutely phenomenal in making us feel comfortable and supported through a really huge and quick decision. That made a huge difference. We’ve been planning with them for so long that we feel we like they’re our little wedding planning family! I couldn’t have dreamt of a better group to help us through every step of this process, and beyond that they’re so much fun to work with and chat all things wedding too!

On April 4th, when we were supposed to get married, we had a really lovely day of watching our favorite movies and taking a few walks, and then my fiance surprised me by re-proposing in our living room and asking me to marry him on our new date! It’s a memory I’ll forever cherish because it was so sweet, thoughtful, and meant so much to me. The date we were looking forward to will still have a lot of meaning for the both of us.

Yes, most of our original plans in terms of decor, songs, cake, bridal party, etc are all still the same. We may make some tweaks here and there to make it more “winter” but nothing major. We’re actually really enjoying having the wedding planned, getting to look forward to it, and not having to do any more major panning. It kind of takes away the pre-wedding wedding stress at least for now!

I’m a planner, a big check list/think 10 steps ahead kind of person, so the immediate stress and the unknown (not just of the wedding, but what was happening with the world) was a lot for me. But working with Jes, Kait, and Emily to adjust our plans helped a lot. Now that we have our new date, we’re just excited and thankful that everybody including friends, family, our wedding planning team has been so unbelievably supportive and empathetic and we are so grateful for that. It was stressful, but once the decision was made we felt much more at ease and are just happy to have our friends, family, and each other be safe and healthy. That’s really all that matters!

Despite the stress, there were positives! We have each other, and we get to enjoy being engaged a little longer which we love. It’s a drop in the bucket, as we’ve been saying! We’ll have our wedding, and we’ll be married, and it will be beautiful, but we’ve really had the chance to remember how lucky we are to have each other for support, and how lucky we are to have the friends and family we do. Even before Covid happened, I’ve been so thankful to have my Mom and Dad for their help with everything – I would not have known where to start without them. Plus, we’ll have a really great story to tell our children, like most of the 2020 brides/grooms will!!

For those planning their weddings, or have had changes, my advice is to keep the big picture in mind! You’re having a wedding to celebrate your love, and your love is the only thing that’s important at the end of the day. This time has put a lot into perspective for everybody, and it’s important to remember the love you share for each other, the love your family and friends have for you, and taking advantage of appreciating the moment you’re in. Being engaged is and should be fun! So have fun! Celebrate throughout the whole engagement, and enjoy all of the free champagne you’ll get when you tell people you just got engaged!

Smaller, intimate weddings

Ali, one of our own expert event planners, is getting married on August 15, with some adjustments.

My fiancé and I were planning on getting married on August 15th, amongst friends and family coming from near and far, at my mother’s repurposed farm in upstate New York. Even with COVID119, my fiancé and I are still getting married on August 15th with a smaller group of family and friends. While waiting to find out how many people we can have at our wedding, we are determined to get married this summer. To us, the part of this wedding we have always been most excited about is to be married, and to start the next chapter of our life together. Being isolated and quarantined together, has truthfully brought us closer and made us realize how we are supposed to be together, making us want to get married sooner. Our families have been amazing in helping us to work out how our wedding can come into fruition, we wouldn’t be able to do it without them. We are excited to see what are wedding looks like!

We’ve been working with Caramoor and Wave Hill to create beautiful wedding experiences that adhere to social distancing and limited guest gatherings. We have a variety of options for celebrations of up to 50 guests.