When a benefit gala sells out in this economy that’s significant news, and Princeton Symphony Orchestra pulled it off. The 204 guests who braved a virtual deluge of rain (but thankfully no tornadoes) on Saturday, April 16, were treated to an evening of classic cabaret with the man the New York Times calls the “crown prince of New York cabaret,” singer and pianist Steve Ross — a regular fixture at the fabled Oak Room of the Algonquin Hotel — accompanied by bassist Brian Cassier.
The other excitement of the evening was a live auction, led by Nicholas D. Lowry of Swann Auction Galleries in New York, of week-long getaways to exquisite vacation homes in destinations spanning the globe from Big Sky, Montana, to Devon, England. In fact, the chateau Castel Merle in Dordogne, France, set among 40 acres of meadowlands and woods and dating back to the 14th century, and the Old Rectory in Devon, England, built in 1843, together pulled in more than $22,000.
Another highlight of the auction was “the performance of a lifetime,” a dinner party for 12 dubbed “A Culinary Masterpiece,” prepared by none other than PSO music director Rossen Milanov. This item was graciously offered twice by maestro Milanov and raised more than $6,000.
The evening’s proceeds of more than $120,000 will benefit the PSO’s general operations, including its extensive education program BRAVO!
We learned something else: nobody retires anymore; they become consultants. We’ve never seen so many consultants at one gala. Bravo!
For more information visit www.princetonsymphony.org.
