Salon Reading: MARY ASTOR’S PURPLE DIARY (The Musical)

MARY ASTOR’S PURPLE DIARY (The Musical)

Music and Lyrics by Michael Garin
Book by Mardie Millit
Based on the book by Edward Sorel
Directed by Carl Andress

In 1965, author-illustrator Edward Sorel moved into a rent-controlled, Upper East Side apartment. While ripping up the linoleum floor, he found a pile of old newspapers with tabloid headlines, all about the biggest sex scandal of 1936. It involved a post-custody battle between a sexually liberated movie star, Mary (The Maltese Falcon) Astor, and her controlling ex-husband. Her numerous affairs, as detailed in her ‘purple diary’, rattled the entertainment industry, from Hollywood to Broadway. Sorel became obsessed with the subject, resulting in a best-selling, illustrated book. This musical version is a fizzy little cocktail inspired by his book, bubbling over with love, passion, infatuation, and a bit of magic!