Memories of summer dreams

‘Wish You Were Here’

By FRITZ MAYER

FORESTBURGH, NY — The Forestburgh Playhouse kicked off its 63rd season on June 15 with a preview performance of a musical about the golden era of the Catskills summer camps called “Wish You Were Here.” The performance was one of the more than 100 Sullivan County Bicentennial events scheduled for the season, and are, accordingly, tied into the area’s history.

The musical is set in the early ’50s at a place called Kamp Karefree, where young people traveled to in search of summer fun and romance. Because there were always more women than men, the male waiters were required, as part of their jobs, to dance with the camp patrons after dinner. Against this backdrop, a boy-meets-girl story unfolds amid singing and dancing, much to the delight of the theatergoers who packed the house.

The performance came after drinks and hors d’oeuvres were served during a cocktail hour with a long list of high-profile guests, including most of Sullivan County’s lawmakers.

It was the second major event of the week for the playhouse. On June 13, there was a fundraiser held at the estate of orchid producer and philanthropist Stuart Salenger. The Forestburgh sprawling estate, known as Philwold, is home to dozens of exotic creatures, including llamas, giant tortoises and even a camel. On the night of the event, the gardens surrounding the various buildings were planted full of lush tropical plants, such as bromeliads and birds of paradise.

Several hundred people turned out to the vast manicured lawn, which fronts Gilman’s Pond, for drinks, dinner and a preview of a couple of the songs from “Wish You Were Here.”

Among the partygoers was Loretta Swit, the actress who played Major Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan on the long-running television series MASH, who has a long history with the theater. Ron Nash, the playhouse’s artistic director, has directed Swit in several productions.

At the “Wish You Were Here” preview, Norman Duttweiler, the producer/director at the theater, told the audience that the fundraiser had brought in some $14,000 for the company.