Who is this Anita Gates you speak of?

A.G.’s journalistic triumphs over 25 years at The New York Times include drinking with Bea Arthur (at a Trump hotel), Wendy Wasserstein (at an Italian restaurant) and Peter O’Toole (in his trailer on a mini-series set near Dublin). It is sheer coincidence that these people are now dead.

At The New York Times, she has been Arts & Leisure television editor and co-film editor, a theater reviewer on WQXR Radio, a film columnist for the Times TV Book and an editor in the Culture, Book Review, Travel, National, Foreign and Metro sections. Her first theater review for The Times appeared in 1997, assessing “Mrs. Cage,” a one-act about a housewife suspected of shooting her favorite supermarket box boy. The review was mixed.

Outside The Times, A.G. has been the author of four nonfiction books; a longtime writer for travel magazines, women's magazines and travel guidebooks; a lecturer at universities and for women’s groups; and a moderator for theater, book, film and television panels at the 92nd Street Y and the Paley Center for Media.

If she were a character on “Mad Men,” she’d be Peggy.

'SMALL WHITE WINE IN A SIPPIE CUP AND A $20 CANDY BAR '

Anita Gates

PARTY ON! “When there’s confetti, there’s a party,” Jimmy Fallon announced at the end of this “Tonight Show” musical segment in June. From left, Laura Benanti, Christopher Jackson, Olga Merediz, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Fallon, Kristin Chenoweth, Phylicia Rashad and Jimmy Smits.

LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA IS just sitting around in an NBC green room when Jimmy Fallon appears at the door. Lin notices Jimmy’s facial expression and asks if he’s O.K. “You seem pretty down,” he says sympathetically. And learns that his friend has just taken a walk through the theater district — and it depressed him.

But Jimmy is soon smiling, because Lin tells him the great news: Broadway is coming back in September. What follows is a six-minute musical number with guest stars and a message that probably got a lot of theater -goers, -lovers and -addicts through the night.

Here's the video.

 FANS OF THE THEATER DISTRICT Phylicia Rashad, left, and Kristin Chenoweth joined the number, which mentions the drunk Elmos of Times Square.

O.K., the first half is pretty lame, and everybody involved knows it. But if you’re going to do a promo like this, you’ve got to man up and sing a few words about a range of shows, from “Aladdin” to “Chicago,” from “Moulin Rouge!” to “West Side Story.”

But the second half, when everybody launches into a parody of “You’ll Be Back,” King George III’s big number from “Hamilton,” is a little slice of heaven. Instead of a British monarch in his 18th-century crown and robes, predicting that the American colonists will change their minds about this independence idea of theirs, we have a stage full of singers reassuring us that New York theater’s future is bright.

Miranda and Fallon (in photo) are joined by guest stars — Laura Benanti, Kristin Chenoweth, Christopher Jackson, Olga Merediz, Phylicia Rashad and Jimmy Smits (he’s in the movie version of “In the Heights,” you know) — raising their voices in song.

Some favorite lines and lyrics:

Jimmy: “I miss going to see a play.”/ Lin: “I miss playing.”

“I miss drinking wine out of sippie cups and a $20 snack.”

“It’s been a full year since you’ve seen a live show or a play.”

“There is life beyond your friends at Netflix, Hulu, Peacock and Disney Plus.”

NOW — GO CHECK OUT THE STREEP/KLINE POST, WHICH IS REALLY A LOWELL/BISHOP POST.

 

 

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