📸 So many SPAC and opera pics! Missing your own party.
PLUS: 🏖️ No. 1 local beach read for crime fiction fanatics was inspired by Saratoga's crime fams of the 1930s.
It’s true — I missed my own party.
Can you believe the Dispatch turned one year old yesterday?
I’ll whip something up to celebrate next week.
In the meantime…
Opera everything — My Fair Lady and ‘magic’-al review of Elixir of Love
Rick Cobello’s book inspired by Saratoga’s 1930’s crime families
SPAC/BalletX pics
Where to pay your respects to the horses who perished in the June 6 fire 🙏
— Abby
🍿 Reviews are in: Opera Saratoga’s ‘Elixir of Love’ is ‘magic’
To write something as local and insider-y as the Dispatch, you must actually be a part of the community. So take the bias as you wish — I’m proudly on the board of Opera Saratoga — but after a year together, Dispatchers, have I ever steered you wrong?
And if you don’t trust me, trust the Berkshire Eagle’s glowing review. (They’re tough.)
Here’s what you need to know about Elixir:
Elixir of Love is in Italian with huge subtitles on a projector. And these are no ordinary subtitles — they’ve been given the Hollywood treatment.
The singing in Elixir might make you forget to breathe for a moment. “Guess I like opera,” was overheard in the restroom during intermission.
The (as I said, tough) Berkshire Eagle’s reviewer writes, “In Opera Saratoga’s nimble hands, Gaetano Donizetti’s charming romantic comedy became even more timeless,” after a headline blaring, “Opera Saratoga’s ‘The Elixir of Love’ turns Donizetti’s classic into Hollywood magic.”
Did I mention the high-fashion costumes, dramatic movie set and laugh-out-loud moments?
There are two more performances: tomorrow (June 25) and Saturday (June 27) at 7 p.m. Pop over to the UPH box office or buy online.
PLUS: There’s still “one of the most beloved musicals of all time,” My Fair Lady!
If you hurry, you can catch this crowd favorite at 7 p.m. tonight. Just go on over to the box office or buy online.
The last two shows are Friday at 7 and Sunday at 2.
📚 The descendants of Saratoga’s Depression-era crime families inspire the first book in a new series by local Rick Cobello
Abby: You’re a former Chief Information Security Officer, enterprise IT executive, and cybersecurity advisor who worked on some pretty large-scale projects during your 40 year-career. Why write a book instead of enjoying a more relaxed retirement?
Rick Cobello: I’ve written most of my life — nonfiction tech — but I always wanted to write fiction about my cybersecurity career. I have five books planned; the first is a Catherine King Adventure set in Saratoga, built around the National Horse Showcase — a real event, though never actually held here.
I ran the backstretch for years and lived on Broadway, so I know the city’s real vibe. Retirement finally let me plot it all out. I even did the final edits on a three-week cruise.
Abby: Writing poolside … now that’s retirement. Was there one story you kept thinking about?
Rick: What became of the descendants of Saratoga’s 1930s crime families? That question gave me my antagonist, Donnie Vescari, and let me play with the city’s “secret” tunnel folklore.
Abby: Why else is Saratoga such a vibrant backdrop?
Rick: The Adelphi is practically a character; its revival is one of Saratoga’s great stories. Congress Park, the springs, the Race Course, Broadway in summer — few small cities have all that.
Abby: True. Tell me about your process and what you have planned for the rest of the series.
Rick: Big ideas first, then a conflict and resolution for each, then “beat sheets” to shape the chapters. Book 2 is underway; Book 3 is set in Iceland.
The Shady Side of Saratoga is fresh off its June 23 release. Order it on Amazon.
📸 IN PICTURES
🩰 BalletX’s stunning SPAC60 kick-off
It wasn’t quite summer yet, but the heat wave was real when SPAC kicked off its 60th classical season with an extraordinary performance by BalletX. When I wrote about it, I didn’t realize I had the stunning photos sitting in my inbox. ‘Tis the season for hanging on my a thread…
Keep reading!
A ‘hot but fabulous’ start to SPAC’s 60th (second story)
FUN FACT
Two of Opera Saratoga’s Festival Artists will take the SPAC stage to sing during Midsummer Night’s Dream. Listen for Maya McGuire and Kayla Sconiers.
📸 IN PICTURES
Opera Saratoga Gala celebrating 65 years, at Saratoga National
🙏 IN MEMORIAN
Saratoga Casino Hotel and the Saratoga Harness Horseperson’s Association will host a public memorial service for the 17 horses that lost their lives in the tragic barn fire.
When: Sunday, June 28, at 10:45 a.m.
Where: The harness track Winner’s Circle at Saratoga Casino Hotel.
Live harness racing will immediately follow.
The horses were laid to rest in individual plots in a private burial held at dusk on June 17, on the grounds of the hotel.
📌 ICYMI…
PBS’ all-Saratoga 🇺🇸 ‘Revolutionary Road Trip’ comes home.
Were you seen 📸 by Seen in Saratoga last Wednesday night?
EXCLUSIVE: FREE 🚎 new trolley to the lake
You’re invited: 💌 Dispatch Dinner Club July 15
🙌 Support your Dispatch
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Local, real, never corporate … I cannot do it without you!
— Abby