Valerie Smaldone
Media Personality, Actress, Producer, Writer
Valerie Smaldone, a 5 time Billboard Magazine Award winner, is perhaps best known for her unprecedented success holding the #1 position in the New York radio market as the midday host of New York’s 106.7 FM. She ended her on air run with the station at the end of 2007. In addition, she was the co-creator, writer, producer and host of 'Spotlight On,' a nationally syndicated program that featured in-depth interviews with top recording artists such as Paul McCartney, Elton John, Sting and Celine Dion, to name a few.
Presently, Valerie can be heard on NBC Network News promos and specialty shows and as the announcer for The Boomer Esiason Show on MSG. She writes a weekly nightlife column for TheThreeTomatoes.com, writes a theater column for Examiner.com, and has an interview program on the Italian American Network. She is an interviewer and feature reporter on Broadway for TonyAwards.com and hosts and produces celebrity portrait unveilings for Broadway stars at famed theater district eatery, Tony’s.
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A trip to Soho for really interesting theater and a change of pace.
I recently interviewed the director and one of the actresses involved with an innovative piece of theater titled, "Naked in a Fishbowl" for my daily radio show on www.wor710.com.
The concept sounded quite fascinating to me. A combination of real life meets theater chronicled by cameras for each performance. "Wow," I thought! "This show is a really unique way to spend an evening."
So I had to go. And I had a blast!
Get this: 4 principal performers and one of three rotating featured performers interact for a little more than an hour on stage to create a slice of life that unfolds in a very surprising fashion. The best way to describe it is improvisational theater, but it's not quite the definition of improv. These women have created rich characters with history and depth and each Monday night take situations from their lives, weave it into their characters, choose a very, very loose story line and then go out on stage and voila! There you have the show!
The women of Naked in a Fishbowl:
Lauren Seikaly, Lynne Rosenberg, Katherine Heller, and Brenna Palughi
What makes this even more unique is that each Monday (the only night the show runs), there are cameras shooting the action. The show is edited down to a 30 minute webisode and posted on their website for viewing. Naked in a Fishbowl has spawned (get it?!!) groupies who return week after week to see what happens to the characters and witness how they evolve. It is a brilliant way to create engagement and interactivity. Episodic theater that just hooks you in.(Yes, another pun!)
Now this production is going to take a hiatus for the summer, so be sure to book the next Monday night that you can, because there are only a few dates left until the cast returns in the Fall.
A great night out for tomatoes and their friends.
Naked in a Fishbowl runs at the SoHo Playhouse at 15 Van Dam Street in Soho. While you're there, take some time to walk through the neighborhood. Stop at the antique shop diagonally across the street on 6th Avenue. Pause for a glass of wine at a local wine bar, or grab an omelette at the Van Dam Diner. Just a great place to enjoy New York.
Check out www.nakedinafishbowl.com
