Debbie Bernick writes: “I wanted to let you know what a wonderful time I had with Jan Roth (ES), Jean Brenner  ’71, and both Jan’s son and my daughter (recent college grads) when we all drove up together to New Haven for the staged reading of “Kiss Me Kate.”  It was a terrific musical recreation of the show, like an old-time radio musical, complete with funny sound effects and a 50-piece student orchestra, which played some material from the Yale archives that had never been performed before. The singers, all Yale alumni who are professional theater folks with international reputations, were absolutely first-rate. Check out any other campus events in the year-long celebration of Cole Porter ’13.The only sad moment, by the way, was when playwright Chris Durang, who was part of the duo singing “Brush Up Your Shakespeare,” tripped and fell on a stair onstage and had to be taken by ambulance to the hospital 10 minutes before the show was about to end. Hopefully, he’s doing well now. And yes, the show had to, and did, GO ON!”

Nathan Wise adds:  “Thank you, Debbie Bernick, for the fine review of KISS ME KATE. I was at the same performance, in fact, in which thespian Christopher Durang (indeed, the very same Mr. Durang who just won this year’s Tony Award for writing Broadway’s best new play on June 9) fell and was injured; and, as EMS was wheeling him out to the waiting ambulance, mine was the voice that called out, ‘Well done, Sir!’ which began the standing ovation that ushered him out of the theatre. Hope he’s fully recovered.”