Bekah Brunstetter, originally from Winston-Salem, North Carolina and now a Los Angeles resident, is a cowriter of the Broadway musical “The Notebook,” one of the hottest shows currently on this spring season. Although she no longer lives in New York, Bekah called the city home when she was a graduate student at The New School and has plenty of favorite places that she still loves and rediscovered when she was in town to work on the show.
Bekah’s New York highlights follow.
Where do you live in NYC?
I…don’t! I lived in various parts of Williamsburg for many years when I was in grad school at the New School, and hustling as a baby playwright after. Then I moved out to LA, where I now live with my husband and two kids. But when The Notebook was in rehearsal, I stayed in a corporate apartment in Midtown. Given that corporate housing was my survival job for years after grad school, this was a very full circle moment.
What is your favorite neighborhood in NYC and why?
The West Village. When I first moved to NYC for grad school, I somehow landed a tiny apartment on Christopher and Bleecker, with a co-classmate who has now been one of my best friends for twenty years. We lived and wrote at the bar down the street, the Four Faced Liar. We watched the Pride parade from our fire escape. We became friends with the mouse that lived under our oven. It was magical. The West Village feels quintessential New York to me, because it’s where I first met It.
Can you share some of your favorite spots in a Theater District and what makes them so great? — please skip, answered in following…The best place for a pre-or post-theater meal and why. What are the dishes to order?
Joe Allen is my forever go-to. Whenever I’m in town working on a play, I treat myself to a very cold, dirty vodka martini, and depending on my mood, a burger or steak frites. Both are excellent. If I’m going alone (and I LOVE to eat alone, especially since having kids) I’ll sit at the bar, or if I’m meeting a friend, I’ll make a reservation and add a big piece of Chocolate pudding cake, because why not. It’s got this cozy, underground feeling, the waiters are always so kind, and it’s a great place to eavesdrop, which is my favorite form of cardio.
Best Theater District watering hole and the drink to get?
On my most recent stint in NYC, I discovered and fell hard for the Vanguard Wine Bar in midtown. It’s on west 51 St, so a bit uptown from the madness of the actual theater district. I found it to be rarely crowded, always welcoming, dim but inviting, and always with a Pinot Noir that I liked. Great sandwiches and light bites, too.
Insider tips for enjoying a Broadway show. Anything to make the experience better?
I love using shows as opportunities to spend time with family and close friends who I don’t get to see as much since I’ve moved out West. Over the development of The Notebook, I’ve started a tradition with my Sister in Law. Every time I’m in town, we see a show or three together. Seeing a show with someone you love somehow makes you even more present for the show. And then the show becomes a piece of your history with the person.
The New York City theater you love to go to and why?
I recently fell in love with City Center, specifically their Encores! series, which is brilliantly curated by Lear DeBessonet. It’s such an opulent, massive, gorgeous space that really shouts TONIGHT, YOU ARE AT THE THEATER. I went to see Sutton Foster in Once Upon a Mattress. I discovered and fell in love with her when I was in high school, which is when I was ALSO cast to stand in the back of the chorus in Mattress. Seeing the show at City Center was so incredibly nostalgic and reminded me why I love plays, especially the ones where people suddenly burst into song.
What other Broadway shows are on your radar right now?
We share a block with The Outsiders, Water for Elephants, and Suffs, so I feel particularly excited to see these shows open and thrive, it feels like we all grew up together. Also our co-directors have other projects: Michael [Greif] is directing Hell’s Kitchen, and Schele [Williams] is directing The Wiz! I’m back in LA keeping my kids alive currently but I can’t wait to get back to NYC and see all of these.
Share your insider New York gems — please skip
Can you share your favorite theaters around the world and why?
The theaters at my alma mater, UNC Chapel Hill, in my home state of North Carolina. The Drama department there is incredible, we’re lucky to have Playmaker’s Rep in residence, so we have the Paul Green Theater and the Kenan, which are beautiful spaces. This is where I wrote and staged my first plays my freshman year of college. My most favorite on campus is Old Playmakers. It was built in 1850, and somehow, when I was in college, they let us put plays on there. It’s gorgeous, sort of falling apart, and definitely haunted.
—