Greetings Ladies! Thank you
for visiting my website. I wanted to create a page just for you, and I
hope you enjoy it!
Rebecca Spencer
Something wonderful happened
to me one summer afternoon in Vermont in July. I was playing the role
of Dolly Levi at the Weston Playhouse. Weston is a picturesque New
England town and home to the Vermont Country Store. One matinee day, as
I walked from the Victorian cast house to the theatre, I saw bouquets
of ladies throughout this quaint town, all dressed in purple and topped
with radiant red hats. A surreal picture was brought to life before my
eyes: Grand ladies in red and purple, strolling the great lawn of the
playhouse, sitting in the town square gazebo, and rocking easily in
rockers on the front porch of the Vermont Country Store. There was
laughter in the air and so much color illuminated against the summer
greenery. A spell was cast over me.
It was several weeks
later when I first shared this encounter with these ladies with Philip
Fortenberry, my Musical Director. He was speechless. Speechless
because that very same magical day that I saw the ladies in Weston he
and my orchestrator, Keith Thompson had been keeping a promise and had
followed through on a wish from their mentor, professor, and dear
friend whom they both had known since they attended college together in
Mississippi. Her name was Virginia Scott and sadly that Summer she
had passed away. She was a grand lady who loved the Broadway community.
One of her final wishes was that in celebration of her life Purple and
Red balloons be released at midnight in Times Square. Again, Red
and Purple and intrigue.
With determination, I set
out to discover more about The Red Hat Society and these vibrant
ladies. I read two charming books by their founder and Queen
Mother, Sue Ellen Cooper. The ladies adopted a poem entitled
WARNING, by Jenny Joseph, which inspired their dress code of red hats
and purple dresses as well as their “Hattitude” for frivolity. Their
hearty philosophy, at age 50, is that life is just beginning, again.
Energized, I was challenged to seek a collection of songs with poignant
lyrics that would embrace the wisdom and gratitude in how we ALL, men
and women alike, have earned our “laugh lines and our cry lines.”
I am thrilled and honored
to introduce Keith Thompson's EAT, DRINK, AND BE MARY! - perhaps a new
humorous Hattitude, and VIRGINIA’S RESPONSE, a very special offering
set to the words written by Virginia Scott. It is her direct response
to the Jenny Joseph poem, WARNING. At Virginia’s request, both WARNING
and VIRGINIA’S RESPONSE were read as part of her eulogy. Virginia
was not a member of the Red Hat Society, but Virginia’s personal
response, indeed, illuminates independence, true character and
vitality.
There is comfort in
earning and sharing the wisdom, acquired through the years, and giving
one’s self permission to live life to the fullest, however individually
defined.
If you follow this link
it will take you to the FAIR WARNING
page,
where you can listen to three
songs, read more about
the recording, see the artwork, and of course, purchase the CD.
AS SEEN IN THE RED HAT SOCIETY LIFESTYLES MAGAZINE
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2006 ISSUE
