{"id":2003772,"date":"2025-09-07T09:48:37","date_gmt":"2025-09-07T09:48:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2003772"},"modified":"2025-09-07T09:48:37","modified_gmt":"2025-09-07T09:48:37","slug":"nell-nolan-noma-dakar-salon-shakespeare-festival-company-cast-party-entertainment-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/nell-nolan-noma-dakar-salon-shakespeare-festival-company-cast-party-entertainment-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Nell Nolan: NOMA Dakar Salon, Shakespeare Festival, Company cast party | Entertainment\/Life"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div data-breakout=\"1\" style=\"position:relative;\">\n<div class=\"col-md-8\">\n<h2>Salon Sets<\/h2>\n<p>A new venture for the New Orleans Museum of Art is the Salon Supper Club presented by First Horizon Bank. The inaugural series of food-and-art-focused events that are inspired by works on view in the museum allows guests to explore the featured exhibitions and installations while celebrating the \u201cability of art to connect us with friends, family, and new acquaintances.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The first NOMA Salon Supper Club presented by First Horizon Bank took place during three hours on a Thursday night in May in celebration of French visual artist <strong>Nicolas Floc&#8217;h<\/strong>\u2019s exhibition of striking photos of, and in, the Mississippi River titled \u201cFleuves-Oc\u00e9an: Mississippi Watershed.\u201d The exhibition is due to close Feb. 22, 2026. <strong>Mary Beth Benjamin, Katherine Duncan<\/strong> and <strong>Ileana Feoli<\/strong> co-chaired the Salon, which limelighted guest chef 22-year-old <strong>E.J. Lagasse<\/strong>, \u201cwho has taken the reins at his father\u2019s eponymous restaurant, Emeril\u2019s.\u201d Guests engaged in a progressive dining experience with cocktails in different venues around the museum.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-breakout=\"2\" style=\"position:relative;\">\n<div class=\"col-md-8\">\n<p>The upcoming Fall Salon Supper Club presented by First Horizon Bank will feature guest chef <strong>Alfredo Nogueira<\/strong> and \u201cA Feast for the Senses, Una Fiesta para los sentidos.\u201d It will occur on Friday, Oct. 3, and will celebrate NOMA\u2019s re-installation of American Art across South, Central, and North America from the Pre-Columbian Era to the present day. Attendees will relish an elegant seated dinner with wine and cocktails in NOMA\u2019s Great Hall. The chairing forces will be <strong>Millie Davis Kohn, Juan and Martine Linares,<\/strong> and a mother-daughter duo in <strong>Pam Ryan and Meaghan Ryan Bonavita.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Two top names at the museum are those of <strong>Susan M. Taylor,<\/strong> The Montine McDaniel Freeman Director, and <strong>Taylor S. Pospisil,<\/strong> NOMA Volunteer Committee Chair.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-breakout=\"3\" style=\"position:relative;\">\n<div class=\"col-md-8\">\n<p>The prandial punctuation between the May and October Salons was the recent one, in July, chaired by <strong>Terrah and Willie Green, Elizabeth and James Williams, Ariel Wilson-Harris and L. Kasimu Harris<\/strong>, and <strong>Jenny and Robb Vorhoff<\/strong>. It celebrated the exhibition \u201cNew African Masquerades: Artistic Innovations and Collaborations,\u201d which was highly praised, but has since closed. It is traveling to other museums. The guest chef for that Salon was <strong>Seringe Mbaye,<\/strong> owner and chef of Dakar NOLA, who was honored with the prestigious 2024 James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant. In a Time magazine \u201c100 Outstanding\u201d list of 2024, and under the Innovators category, James Beard-winning chef and author <strong>Kwame Onwuachi<\/strong> began his profile on Mbaye, saying \u201cEvery few generations a chef emerges who not only embodies the best in our profession but\u2026(who) introduces new ideals and unapologetically represents their culture.\u201d Dakar and <strong>Ralph Brennan<\/strong> Restaurant Group collaborated for the exhibition-inspired menu at the July Salon Supper Club.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-breakout=\"4\" style=\"position:relative;\">\n<div class=\"col-md-8\">\n<p>During the course of the evening, an affable Mbaye mingled with the many guests, dozens of whom related their fine experiences at his renowned restaurant on Magazine Street. Others within the July Salon gathering were a host of representatives from Presenting Sponsor First Horizon Bank and additional donors, a number of whom were present. Listed in the Gold category was <strong>Walda Besthoff,<\/strong> and in the Silver, <strong>Elizabeth Boh<\/strong> and <strong>Peggy and Timber Floyd<\/strong>. More individuals as stated donors were <strong>Shaun and Foster Duncan, Mrs. Robert H. Boh, Eileen and Joey Devall, Phyllis M. Taylor<\/strong>, above Elizabeth and James Williams, <strong>R.P. Bartee, Caroline and Murray Calhoun, Pam Davis Friedler, Ann Duffy and John Skinner, Julie and Ted George,<\/strong>\u00a0Millie and <strong>Robert Kohn, Kristen and Paul Leonard, Ellen Manshell<\/strong>, Dr. <strong>Blanca Rosa Maldonado, Renee and Paul Masinter, Cammie and Charles Mayer, Eduardo E. Rodriguez, Mimi and Claude Schlesinger, Susu and Andrew Stall, Suzanne and Robert Thomas<\/strong>, and <strong>Lele and Brent Wood.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-breakout=\"5\" style=\"position:relative;\">\n<div class=\"col-md-8\">\n<p>Live musical entertainment, the opportunity to savor a signature dish from chef Mbaye, and the support of NOMA and this inaugural series all blended as the party pack made their presence roundly felt at \u201cA Taste of West Africa and New Orleans.\u201d Salon rated a salute!<\/p>\n<h2>Wild Thyme<\/h2>\n<p>The New Orleans Shakespeare Festival at Tulane closed the summer season with a rollicking, magical presentation of \u201cA Midsummer Night\u2019s Dream\u201d by William Shakespeare in the Lupin Theatre. The show will be remounted in January 2026 in Dixon Hall for school children and will be open to the general public for one evening performance. <strong>Graham Burk<\/strong>, the Festival\u2019s interim artistic director, rated kudos as the director. More praise tapped the artistic staff and cast, which included, among others, the two sets of young lovers as played by <strong>Sarah-Grace Donnelly, Edward Montoya, Brandon Sutton<\/strong> and <strong>Jane Cooper,<\/strong> and <strong>Celeste Cahn<\/strong> (Quince), <strong>Ian Hoch<\/strong> (Bottom), <strong>Burton Tedesco<\/strong> and <strong>Zarah Hukule \u2018A Spalding<\/strong> (Oberon and Titania), <strong>Robinson J. Cyprian<\/strong> (Flute) and <strong>James Bartelle<\/strong> (Puck), whose artwork, \u201cFairest Creatures,\u201d bedecked the walls.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-breakout=\"6\" style=\"position:relative;\">\n<div class=\"col-md-8\">\n<p>An opening-night reception added to the staged fun as playgoers socialized during intermission and post-show, along with the staff and actors. Extending their compliments as they raised glasses of cheer and enjoyed the lavish Black Pearl Catering were Festival advisory board chair <strong>Cassie Worley<\/strong>, vice chair <strong>Kathryn Scurlock,<\/strong> secretary <strong>Marie Cahn and James \u201cJimmy,\u201d the Silas Coopers, Keith Marshall, Marcia Reck, Kathleen DeJean, Caroline and Arthur Nead, Susan Holman, Peggy Scott Laborde and Errol Laborde, Beth Chauvin,<\/strong> sisters <strong>Sally Reeves and Susie Hoskins, Julie Breitmeyer, Robert E. Young, Keith Marshall,<\/strong> and Marigny Opera House owners, <strong>Scott King and Dave Hurlbert,<\/strong> who quoted the line from the play, \u201cI know a bank where the wild thyme blows.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-breakout=\"7\" style=\"position:relative;\">\n<div class=\"col-md-8\">\n<p>The following week, another round of theatergoers packed the premises and witnessed, as the plot was broken down, \u201cAthens in Disarray,\u201d \u201cMischief in Fairyland,\u201d \u201cTitania Falls for an Ass,\u201d and, after the spells were broken, \u201cWeddings &amp; a Play.\u201d Board member <strong>Julian Wheatley<\/strong> and spouse <strong>Margie<\/strong> were present with three generations of their family, totaling about 16, and guests <strong>Will Foster<\/strong> and his mother, <strong>Candy<\/strong>. In the closing lines of \u201cA Midsummer Night\u2019s Dream,\u201d Puck addressed the audience with \u201cSo, good night unto you all.\u201d He also asked for a show of hands (\u201cif we be friends\u201d), and got the requested ovation.<\/p>\n<h2>Keeping &#8216;Company&#8217;<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-breakout=\"8\" style=\"position:relative;\">\n<div class=\"col-md-8\">\n<p>In celebration of its 58th season, Summer Lyric Theatre at Tulane University went for the high C\u2019s: \u201cA Chorus Line,\u201d \u201cCompany,\u201d and \u201cCarousel\u201d as the recent productions. After the final performance of Stephen Sondheim\u2019s \u201cCompany,\u201d Dr. <strong>Marc Behar,<\/strong> an executive committee member of the 2025 Steering Committee, and <strong>Jeff Sbisa<\/strong> entertained the cast and crew at their stunning Garden District home. And pool. Nothing like a dip!<\/p>\n<p><strong>Ken Goode<\/strong> and <strong>Don Paul Landry<\/strong> are the Steering Committee\u2019s co-chairs. In addition to Mark Behar, the executive committee includes Drs. <strong>Anand and Maya Irimpen, Jeff Meckstroth and Sarah Sharp Meckstroth<\/strong>, and <strong>Barbara and<\/strong> Dr. <strong>Mark Workman.<\/strong> Twenty-two board members complete the roster.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-breakout=\"9\" style=\"position:relative;\">\n<div class=\"col-md-8\">\n<p>\u201cCompany\u2019\u201ds artistic director was <strong>C. Leonard Raybon<\/strong>; the director was <strong>Leslie Castay,<\/strong> whose first production, as an actress, with SLT was in 1980; <strong>Jose C. Simbulan<\/strong> was the conductor and musical director; and <strong>Bogdan Mynka<\/strong> starred as Robert \u201cBobby.\u201d whose single status at age 35 causes a flutter among his friends. <strong>Richard \u201cRich\u201d Arnold<\/strong> led off the cast alphabetically and enacted the role of Larry, the younger, compliant husband to <strong>Wendy Miklovic<\/strong>\u2019s character, Joanne, who sings the snarky song, \u201cThe Ladies Who Lunch.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The hosts covered the dining room table with a lace tablecloth on which they placed floral arrangements of lilies, yellow roses and baby\u2019s breath. Favorite buffet dishes \u2014 all qualified! \u2014, were cranberry meat balls and pasta Alfredo with mushrooms. These were enjoyed by Denver County Court Judge <strong>Clarisse Gonzales, Doug Estes, Golan Moskowitz and Trey Pratt,<\/strong> and cast members <strong>Kayla Ceaser, Alix Paige Loomis<\/strong> with spouse <strong>Dodd, Joseph Mace<\/strong> with <strong>Daniel Rigamer, Meredith Long Dieth<\/strong> with <strong>Ford Dieth<\/strong>, and both <strong>Leslie and Keith Claverie.<\/strong> All enjoyed keeping \u201cCompany.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.nola.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Salon Sets A new venture for the New Orleans Museum of Art is the Salon Supper Club presented by First Horizon Bank. The inaugural series of food-and-art-focused events that are inspired by works on view in the museum allows guests to explore the featured exhibitions and installations while celebrating the \u201cability of art to connect [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2003773,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2003772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Nell-Nolan-NOMA-Dakar-Salon-Shakespeare-Festival-Company-cast-party.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2003772","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2003772"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2003772\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2003773"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2003772"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2003772"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2003772"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}